A Romanian Secret
by KJ Bridgerton
Summary: Hermione relocates to Romania on a temporary assignment for the Ministry. She just might find more there than she ever expected.
1. Chapter 1

"Hermione, open this door right now. Mum sent a basket of food and a note telling me to feed you." Charlie Weasley yelled through the door, this was insane. Two weeks ago Hermione had begun a new job as the interim ambassador to Romania and had moved there despite Molly Weasley's pleading. Love for his mother was all that had Charlie standing on her doorstep. It was freezing out here and apparently the girl in question was not at home. He was about to walk away when the door was flung open, "Charlie?" It took him a moment to respond, "Who was this woman?" He hadn't seen Hermione at all in several years, she had been somewhere with her parents or off working, and when she had been at the Burrow he had been here in Romania. "Charlie?" she waved her hand in front of his face, "Charlie maybe you should come in and sit down." She took the hamper from his hand and pulled him inside by his arm.

It was no wonder that it took her forever to get to the door, Charlie thought as she led him into the house, it was enormous. From the outside he had assumed it was one of those old houses they turned into apartment complexes, he was mistaken. He shook his head as he realized that he had no idea what she was rambling on about. He had to pay attention.

"So what did Molly send with you? She's been sending me packages everyday despite my protesting that at 27 I can actually cook for myself." She smiled at him as she pulled plates down out of the cabinet; it was then that she noticed that he was staring at his surroundings. "This house is insane, I actually got lost this morning trying to get down from my bedroom."

Charlie laughed at that. "Is that why it took you so long to answer the door tonight?"

"Of course not, I was leaving bread crumbs so I could find my way back to where I was; it took some time to tear the bread." She laughed at the confused look on his face, "It's from a muggle fairy tale Charlie, these children are lost in the woods and leave bread crumbs behind to find their way home."

"Sounds like a really bad story." They stayed silent after that. Hermione continued to rummage through the cabinets while Charlie unpacked the food.

Once they had their food and where eating, Charlie broke the silence. "So why exactly do you live in this humongous house if you can't even find your way around. I have dragon pens smaller than this place."

"It is rather large, I didn't want to move in here, especially with the house elves they have working here, but it comes with the job."

"Why exactly are you here?"

"Kingsley's been having trouble finding someone he trusts enough to establish in a lifetime position in a country that he is having difficulty with. He asked me if I minded relocating for a bit." She looked up, he seemed to be listening intently so she continued; "I've been working for the Ministry with the former Ambassador to Romania on negotiations with a new trade treaty."

"I didn't realize there were problems." Hermione looked back up from her fork quickly.

"You actually aren't supposed to; we've been keeping it under wraps to keep it out of the press. It always works better for both parties if we can work out what's best for our countries without the interference of an angry mob." She half smiled at him, "So don't tell, okay."

Charlie laughed at her and they continued to eat their meal. He told her about his work on the dragon reserve and kept her hanging on his every word as he told her a tale about his latest venture out in the mountains trying to wrangle an escaped young dragon.

When they had finished eating Charlie started gathering up the dishes. "Charlie, what are you doing?"

"I'm cleaning up the dishes, Hermione, what do you need the left over crumbs for your bread trails?"

"No it's just…well I mean."

"Yes?"

"Nothing. Just thanks for helping." She finally replied as she began to fill the sink with hot soapy water from her wand.

"Alright, now it's my turn." She turned and looked at him, "What are you doing?"

She chuckled, it wasn't like the laugh of most of the girls he knew, it came from within, like she really meant it, it was nice. "Hermione, you're a witch, you know."

"I know, but I never really feel like my dishes are clean unless I do it myself," she shrugged, "guess I'll always be a muggle at heart."

An hour later, Charlie declared that he had to get back home, "I've had a blast tonight Hermione, it's been a long time since I've seen someone from home."

Hermione smiled up at him, he looked so much like the rest of his family, and she really missed them. "Well then we'll have to do this often." He hugged her before he disapperated back to his home on the edge of the reserve.


	2. Chapter 2

"Charlie!" Hermione exclaimed as she all but ran up to her front door. He was just about to knock on the door to meet her for their weekly Molly Weasley dinner, when he heard her yell his name from the walkway. It wasn't until she wrapped him in a hug, still moving at full force until she hit him, that he saw the stunned man she had left behind her. "Please, just play along." She whispered in his ear, before placing a kiss on his cheek. Backing up and taking his hand in hers, she motioned for the man she had been walking with to come up. "I'm sorry Paul. I wasn't expecting Charlie back so soon. He's supposed to be gone for several more days. Well come inside both of you, there's no use standing out here."

Both men followed Hermione, each a bit shell shocked, into the front room. "Make yourselves comfortable. Would you like something to drink Paul? Charlie, be a dear and come help me will you?"

Charlie agreed and followed her from the room, "What is going on Hermione?" It had been three weeks since they had shared their first hamper of food sent from Molly to "feed her children" in all the time they had spent together each week he had never seen her act this way or talk about seeing someone.

"I'm so sorry about that. I couldn't get rid of him! He's been after me since I got here to go out with him and usually I would completely refuse. It's just I've not been out of my office in weeks and it was nice to have someone interested. Turns out he's a bit obsessed with Harry and Voldemort, couldn't talk about anything else all night. When he insisted on taking me home I tried to apparate away but he knew exactly where I was going."

Charlie grabbed her and pulled her closer to him, stretching out her arms and checking them over. "What did he do to you? Are you okay? I'll kill him."

"Charlie. Calm down, right now." When he didn't listen she yanked her arms back and crossed them over her chest. "He did nothing other than be slightly creepy, I knew that if he thought we were... well a we… that he would get the hint and back off. You are slightly intimidating to those who don't know you."

Charlie laughed, "Alright then, love, let's get this creep to leave you alone."

"Sorry we took so long Paul." Hermione said as they reentered the room. "Charlie's mum sent us a hamper full of food to eat. We had to put it away so it wouldn't go bad." She sat down on the couch with Charlie next to her. They had never sat so close before.

"What did the two of you do today?" Charlie asked, taking Hermione's hand in his own. Paul looked over at the two of them, clearly this was not the ending to his 'date' with the Hermione Granger that he had in mind.

"I just showed her around town some; she said she hadn't been out of the office since she got here."

"I'm afraid that's my fault." Charlie said, grinning at Hermione before looking back at Paul. "I've been out of town. I work at the Reserve on the outside of town."

"The dragon reserve?" Charlie leaned back and smiled at the man's reaction, he'd met very few men who didn't cower in fear at even the thought of being close to dragons. Paul began fidgeting in his chair. They rarely asked enough questions to know that Charlie himself spent very little time actually wrangling the dragons. "I just realized the time." Paul said as he glanced up at the clock, "I must be going. I'll leave the two of you to your dinner." Charlie stood to walk the man out using his height to his advantage.

"Let me see you out, Paul." He didn't little to hide the dark undertone to his voice.

When Charlie returned, Hermione was kitchen getting plates and removing the covers of the dishes Molly had sent. "She always sends so much food; I still have leftovers from what she sent just me earlier this week." She looked up at Charlie, usually he jumped right in and started helping but today he stopped right in her way so that she had no choice but to stop what she was doing.

"Stop chattering." The tone in his voice stopped Hermione in her tracks. He was gritting his teeth so hard his mouth barely moved as he spoke, "I want to know what you were planning on doing if I hadn't been here waiting on you."

"I…I don't know."

"That's not good enough. Hermione the only reason he left in such a hurry was that I was here. He could have…" Charlie gripped the counter with his hand, in an effort to look anywhere other than his face Hermione concentrated on that hand, he was gripping her counter so hard his knuckles were whiter than the plates she had pulled from the cabinets. "Hermione look at me." He growled, the fingers of his other hand moving her chin so that she was looking up at him. It was then that he was close enough to see into her eyes, she wasn't as calm as he had first thought. That fact brought him back to himself. "I'm sorry. I overreacted, but he won't bother you again." He stepped in closer to her, barely an inch separated them. "You really scared me when you brought me in here to tell me about him."

"Charlie what did you say to him?" He was so close, she'd never noticed before how he radiated heat, how his eyes weren't the same color as the rest of his brothers, there was a brown in them that must have come from Molly. "Your eyes are almost brown." She whispered.

Charlie smiled at her, different than before, "So are yours." He whispered back to her.

"We better eat before it gets cold." Hermione said, backing away from him. "Wouldn't want to tell Molly that we let all this good food go to waste." She laughed shakily; she was still trying to figure out why her stomach was all in knots, this was Charlie Weasley for goodness sake. Ron and Ginny's older brother!

Charlie shook his head as he left for the night. "What the hell happened tonight?" He asked himself as he stepped out of the house and disapparated into the dark.

Hermione hadn't heard from him in a week. It had been six days and 22 hours and some odd minutes since he had left her house after their weekly dinner. Hermione was crestfallen; he was really her only friend in the entire country. "I know he has a busy job and he's built a life for himself here in Romania but I really thought he was enjoying our dinners as much as I was."

It had been six days and 22 hours since he had left her house. He hadn't been sleeping, every time he closed his eyes he saw the look on her face when they had been so close in the kitchen, he could have kissed her they were so close. Just a few millimeters more and their lips would have been touching. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He'd been with plenty of women; he was a 34 year old man after all. He'd a full life, most women he'd been able to get out of his head, rather quickly, quicker than most of them liked, Hermione was different. She was gorgeous. He groaned as he stood up from his chair, "this would be easier if she wasn't so bloody gorgeous, and smart, and independent."

"That's it." Hermione said to the empty room.

Charlie jumped up as green flames burst to life in the fireplace in front of him, startling him from his thoughts, "Hermione?"

"Were you expecting someone else?" She questioned.

He'd never seen her so unsure of herself before, grant it he'd only really known her for a short time but even when that man had been harassing her she had been sure in her actions, even if they weren't completely thought through. "No I wasn't expecting anyone else. How are you?"

"How am I?" she fumed, "Charlie you've ignored me for the past week. Not a note or an excuse just nothing since you left my house last Thursday night. Apparently you were just ignoring me, got bored entertaining your brother's friend and decided to go back to your own life without looking back." She turned on her heel to step back into the fireplace. She was about to shout her destination when Charlie dragged her out of the fireplace.

"Is that what you think?' He was as fired up as she was now, "You think that I haven't contacted you because I grew bored and was ready for something different? That I went back to my life without as much as a glance backwards?"

"Well what was I supposed to think Charlie?" They were both yelling now.

Charlie moved towards her, Hermione was having none of it she backed away, until her back was literally up against the wall. He was close again; on her tiptoes she could kiss him. "Stop thinking like that." She chided herself.

"I haven't stopped thinking about you all week." He said, much quieter now. "Every single time I close my eyes I see your damn chocolate eyes, I can't go two seconds without thinking about how wonderful it was to be this close to you. And at night, it's the worst at night Hermione," he was so close that she didn't think it was possible but he leaned in closer, "I've been dreaming about you."

She stopped breathing, he was so close, and she couldn't tear her eyes away from his. "I've been dreaming off doing this all week." He mumbled before he closed the tiny gap between them and captured her lips with his. She ran her hands up his chest, it sent shivers down his spine, he didn't stop until neither of them could breathe. He pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. "Hermione" he breathed. She was breathing too hard to speak.

"I shouldn't have done that." He said when he had regained himself, "I couldn't stop myself. I apologize Hermione." He started to move away from her.

"Stop." He paused when her hands curled around his shirt, "I've been thinking about the same thing." She smirked up at him, "For example, this morning in the middle of a discussion about whether or not dragon hide should be able to be freely traded across borders, all I could think about was you." Hermione leaned her body back into his. "Does that mean I get to kiss you now?" He growled at her before capturing her lips in another kiss.

"Mum sent another basket."

"I don't care, I'm not hungry." Hermione said, trying to pull him back down to her. They both looked at her stomach as it rumbled, she smiled up at him, "Well maybe I am a bit hungry." He laughed and stood pulling her up from the couch with him.

"Come on, to the kitchen. I won't have my mum killing me for starving you." She laughed. His kitchen was homey, she watched as he went around pulling out the things they would need.

"Charlie?"

"Yes?"

"How long have you lived here?"

"In this house? About twelve years, I guess. That's when I got my first promotion and moved out of the housing on the reserve. It's not as fancy as yours."

"No, I like it."

Hermione left later that night, after several goodnight kisses, she fell into bed when she got home, a huge smile still on her face. Replaying the end of the night in her head, she was worse than Lavender had been in school.

"I do actually have to leave town for a few days," he said as he played with a few strands of her hair, "I'm going with a friend of mine, James, up into the mountains. We've been getting reports from scouts of a free range dragon wrecking havoc in a remote muggle village.

"It sounds a bit dangerous to me Charlie."

He pulled back from her, "Don't you start on me too."

"What?"

"Everyone else is already on my case. Dragons are so dangerous Charlie, why can't you come back to England and do something here, something safer. Hell, I don't even work with dragons most of the time!"

"Charlie, come back down here." He turned to look at her from where he was pacing the floor. She was reclining back on the couch where he had left her. "I didn't mean any of that, I was just going to tell you to be careful and ask you when you were going to be back."

He hung his head and sat down next to her, "Sorry, I'm just a little sensitive about it."

"I can fix that." She smirked pulling him back down to her.


	3. Chapter 3

"We should only be gone for about two weeks this time." Charlie said as he folded clothes and put them in his bag.

"You know I can pack a lot faster than this if you let me use magic." Hermione said from her perch at the head of the bed. "One swish of my wand and everything you need is packed up nice and tight and ready to go."

"Yes, brightest witch of your age and all that, however; I like knowing what's in my suitcase and that it's actually there and I just don't think that it's there." Charlie snapped the clasps on his bag shut. "James and his wife invited us over for dinner before we leave. That is if you want too." He grinned, "It would mean missing out on a hamper from mum."

"I think I can deal with that, just one week though, otherwise we might starve to death."

"I'm so excited you're here!" Arianna exclaimed, she grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her with her towards the kitchen. "Charlie, I'm kidnapping her. I need to know all sorts of things that you won't let me ask her."

"I think she can hold her own against you. I'm not afraid." Charlie laughed and went towards the living room where he knew James would be.

"I've heard a lot about you recently." Ari said she handed Hermione a bowl and instructed her to stir, it was a bit like walking into Molly's kitchen, bowls stirring themselves and ingredients flying from cabinets to bowls and back again. "I can only have so many things cooking magically at once or they all start running in to each other. I'm still learning how to work in this kitchen." She smiled at Hermione.

"Alright, Ari that's enough, stop torturing her she's our guest remember." Ari laughed at her husband as he and Charlie entered the room and started moving the finished food to the table.

During dinner Charlie, James, and Arianna told Hermione stories from their day at the reserve. James worked with the Hungarian Horntails and had just hatched a new egg that morning. Arianna had been healing burns all day given out freely by the new little dragon. When they moved into the living room after dinner, Arianna began to interrogate Hermione. "Charlie says you're here working at the British Embassy. That must be exciting."

"Actually, she doesn't just work at the Embassy." Charlie chimed in before Hermione had a chance to respond. "She's the ambassador."

"Seriously, how old are you?" James blurted out, earning him an elbow in the ribs from his wife.

Hermione laughed, "It's fine. I'm 27; I'm only in this position temporarily while Kingsley finds a replacement for the last Ambassador to Romania. I was working under him when the accident happened and he was unable to continue his work."

"Kingsley, as in Kingsley Shacklebolt the British Minister of Magic?"

"One in the same." Charlie said, "He worked with my father before he was this Minister of Magic. You all know this; he was in the Order of the Phoenix with my parents."

Hermione turned to him, "You say that like you didn't play a vital part in the Order too."

"Wait a second," Arianna started, "Are you that Hermione Granger? The one who helped defeat" she paused for a beat, it had been ten years and people still had trouble voicing his name, "Voldemort?" Part of the infamous Trio."

Hermione stared at her cup as if it had sprouted wings. This is what she was afraid of; she was enjoying everyone not looking at her like she had an extra head because of what she had helped Harry do. Charlie squeezed her leg, "Yes, Hermione and my brother are Harry's best friends. It's been a long time but they still have trouble talking about it. We all do."

Arianna's whole countenance changed, "Hermione I am sorry. I wasn't thinking I was just so surprised. She reached over from her chair and took Hermione's hand from her cup, she waited until Hermione looked up at her before she continued, "my mom is a Muggle. Thank you."

"So Hermione, Where are you from?" James jumped in.

She smiled and answered their questions, before she left Arianna pulled her over to the side. "I really am sorry. I'd really enjoy it if you came over while the guys are away. I get lonely when James is gone."

Hermione hugged her, "Don't worry about it; it just hit me so unexpectedly that I didn't have time to think about it. I would love to spend some time together. I'm going to be busy at work but I'm sure we can work something out."

Charlie had been gone for two weeks, when an unfamiliar owl tapped on her office window.

"Hermione, Finally got a message from James. It's taking longer than expected. Today is my day off; would you like to meet up when you're off work? –Ari"

Hermione looked down at her desk, "Addison, could you come in here please."

"Yes, Ms. Granger what can I do for you?"

Hermione smiled as she wrote a quick note back to Ari. "I've got a better idea. How about lunch? If you can; twenty minutes here at the Embassy." Hermione tied the note back onto the owls' outstretched leg and went back to her paperwork.

"Hermione?" Ari questioned as she stuck her head around the office door.

"Hey come on in. I'll be just a minute." She turned back to the fireplace, "Thank you very much for you time Prime Minister. We'll continue to keep you updated as we continue down this path." Hermione turned back to Arianna, "Sorry about that, he gets flustered when I have to contact him."

"You were just talking to the Prime Minister of Romania, through the Floo Network."

Hermione laughed and led Arianna out the door. "There's restaurant right down the street that I love."

Hermione and Ari spent the day shopping, Ari needed some supplies for her office and since she was already in town wanted to make day off it. The girls pushed their way into Arianna and James house, their arms full of bags. They had put their bags down and were standing in the kitchen when a man burst through the back door. "Ari are you here?"

"Aiden, I'm right here. What is it?"

He was leaning over, his hands on his hips, dragging in air as if he had been running a marathon. "We've been looking for you everywhere. There's been…an accident. You're needed at the infirmary." Arianna moved to get her bag, Aiden grabbed her arm. "Ari, not as a healer, it's James and Charlie. There was an accident."


	4. Chapter 4

Arianna froze in the middle of the kitchen, not moving, barely breathing. "Aiden where are they?" Hermione asked putting an arm around Ari to keep her upright.

"We've just got them back here to our infirmary. It's this way." Hermione propelled Arianna forward as she followed the man out the door and across the darkened field. Hermione had never been on the reserve before, whether it was with Charlie or today with Ari she always apparated straight to the house. She was walking blind in the dark, only the light from her wand illuminating the back of the man they were following.

As soon as they stepped into the infirmary, Arianna snapped from her trance. The familiar surroundings placed her back into healer mode. "Where is he? I want to see his charts and someone needs to fill me in on exactly what happened to him."

Aiden steered her in the right direction, "They were brought in an hour ago, Ari he looks pretty bad, but we've got him stabilized." He opened the door and let them into the room. James had been giving a blood replenishing potion but was still as white as the sheets on his hospital bed. Three giant lines ran from one side of his chest to the other, they had been healed back together but were still nasty. They were going to leave a scar. James opened his eyes, and for Arianna there was no one left in the room but the two of them,

"Hey Ari." he croaked, his throat sore from the tubes they had to use to force him to ingest the potions faster.

She sat on the edge of the bed and kissed his forehead. "I thought I told you to be more careful."

Hermione backed from the room. "Where's Charlie?" she asked Aiden who was looking over James chart in the hallway.

"Charlie Weasley. He's upstairs in 513."

Hermione thanked him and walked down the hallway. She fought the urge to run. After the war she had spent far too many hours waiting around in hospitals, after seeing James lying there she was scared to see the state that Charlie was in. No one had said anything about him since they'd arrived. It was the slowest elevator she had ever been on. The seconds ticked by before the door finally opened. Hermione walked as fast as she could with out actually sprinting down the hall.

She slowly pushed open the closed door. There was a healer blocking the view of the bed from her vision. She stopped breathing, pictures of those she had lost flashed through her mind. It was then that she heard his voice, he was asking for James.

"He's going to be okay Charlie." She said from the doorway. The doctor turned to the side when he heard her voice, neither man had noticed when she moved into the open doorway. She could breathe again. He was okay.

Charlie tried to smile at her, but winced in pain. "Charlie, you need to lie down. I'll let you know about James as soon as I know something." The healer said, pressing down on Charlie's shoulder.

"He's right Charlie." Hermione said walking into the room. "You've got to rest."

The healer backed out of the room to give the two a moment alone. There was nothing more he could do at the moment. Hermione stood in front of him and looked over his wounds. "Are you alright?" She questioned, running her fingers lightly over his cheek.

"I will be." He said, looking up at her. "How did you know I was here?"

"You sit back and I'll tell you."

He smirked, "yes ma'am". Wincing he tried to move himself backwards on the bed. Hermione placed a hand on his back to help him and he cried out in pain.

"Charlie?" He didn't move, just sat there, eyes closed. Not speaking. Hermione moved around the bed and pulled up his shirt, there was a gash there. "Did you tell the Healer about this? Charlie it's still bleeding." Hermione pushed the call button. No one responded. "Damn it, Charlie. Why didn't you let someone look at this?" Hermione pulled out her wand and sent her patronus running down the hall to find a Healer.

"You know that wasn't necessary, someone would have answered the page soon." Charlie said.

"Shut up Charlie. You can't see how bad it is."

"I can feel it."

Hermione lightly ran her fingers down his back, next to the gash. "You have to get this shirt off. It's going to infect the wound. As she spoke the shirt vanished off his back.

"You sure are eager to get me naked, Ms. Granger."

Hermione moved around to face him; his eyes were still shut as if he was trying to keep out the pain, when she kissed him on the forehead. "It's going to be okay, Charlie." She whispered, her lips brushing against his forehead as she spoke, "I promise."

She pulled back when the door flung open and the healer skidded to a stop. "What's wrong?" he panted. Hermione's patronus had found him and hounded him all the way back to Charlie's room.

"Apparently you missed something in your examine." Hermione turned to him, hands firmly planted on her hips, "I can see how you did of course it's only a major gash all the way down his back."

"Hermione, it's okay." Charlie said, trying not to let her see how much pain he was in.

The healer went to work on Charlie's back; by the time he was finished, Charlie was barely hanging onto consciousness. He was leaning into Hermione for support.

Charlie slowly opened his eyes, trying to figure out where he was. The last thing he could remember was finding the dragon in the mountains. No. James had been hurt, and then….then Hermione was there. No that couldn't be right, she wasn't in the mountains. She was safe at home. He pushed himself up into a sitting position. He was sore but at least he could move. He tried to move his legs, but the right one wouldn't budge. "This is not good." He thought to himself. He screwed his eyes shut, "No matter what, It'll be okay." He opened his eyes and chuckled when he looked down. The only thing stopping his leg from moving was the bushy headed brunette sleeping on it.

Hermione groaned as her pillow began to shake. "Hold on, my pillows do not move, and why's it so hard?" She thought to herself, forcing her eyes open.

"Good Morning." Charlie said, smiling down at her.

"Charlie?" remembering where they were she jumped to her feet. "How do you feel? Is your back okay? Lean forward and let me see."

Charlie grabbed her hand. "Slow down, love," he said swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. "I'm fine. The wonders of magic."

Hermione helped Charlie onto the couch back at his house. The healer had released him under strict orders that he was not to return to work until his back had healed completely. Hermione sat on the floor in front of the couch and leaned back up against it. Charlie was lying on his side on the couch, he couldn't lay flat on his back because of the healing wound nor could he lie on his stomach from the injuries to his ribs.

"I'm so glad you're okay." Hermione sighed as Charlie ran his fingers through her hair. "When I got to the hospital, I was so worried. Then you weren't in with James and no one had said anything about you." She turned her face towards the couch, and he could see the tears in her eyes. He moved himself so that he was sitting and pulled her up next to him.

"Hermione." He breathed as he pulled her in for a kiss. He pulled back from her and leaned his forehead against hers. "I should have told them to contact you. I didn't think about it."

"Charlie, you were hurt. You weren't thinking about anything, you shouldn't have been."

"Not then Hermione, before I left. I should have let them know that if anything happened…anything at all, that they should contact you immediately."

"Charlie, you don't have to" she didn't get to finish before his lips were on hers again.

"Listen to me. I know that if anything happened to you I would want to know right away." He paused and tilted her chin up so that she was looking at him. "This isn't exactly the way I would have chosen to tell you but nothing about us has been exactly planned. I love you, Hermione."


	5. Chapter 5

"Charlie get in here, what's taking you so long." Hermione said as she skidded around the doorframe in her sock feet. "I swear we will start the movie without out you!" She turned to see why Charlie was frozen in place, staring at the other end of the kitchen. "Oh, Bill." She searched her brain for the right thing to say next, she knew Bill pretty well and lying to him was not going to be easy. "How are you?" she said walking over to give him a hug. Charlie still hadn't spoken. "Cat got your tongue, Charlie?" she smiled up at Bill, i what was with the Weasley men and their need to tower over her. i "Seems your brother here has lost the ability to speak. Are you staying long? Several of us are having a muggle movie night here tonight. Charlie's supposed to be getting us some popcorn and drinks."

She moved back across the room towards Charlie, and grabbed the bowls of popcorn, "Bring the drinks in when you come boys."

She put the bowls down on the coffee table in Charlie's living room and motioned for the couple in the room to move closer. James worked at the reserve with Charlie, his wife Arianna worked there as well but as the on-sight healer. "Okay, so Charlie's brother Bill is in kitchen." She whispered to them.

"And we're whispering because?"

Hermione shot him a scathing look, "We're whispering because we haven't told his family that we're together and this isn't exactly the way we wanted anyone to find out."

"Why not?" James retorted.

Arianna elbowed him in the ribs. "I'll explain to you later, dear. Just don't act like anything's going on."

"Thanks Ari." Hermione leaned over and hugged her friend. "This is going to be fun." She said as she sighed, grabbing her blanket from the couch she had vacated earlier and moving over to a chair. Scary movie night was not going to be as much fun alone in a chair.

Charlie hadn't moved since his brother had apparated into kitchen. "Charlie, are you all right?" Bill moved slowly towards his brother. Trying to understand why he wasn't responding at all to him. His movement finally shook Charlie from his shock.

"Big Brother!" He exclaimed as he wrapped him in a hug. "What are you doing in Romania?"

"On a mission from our mother," Bill smiled, "actually I volunteered to come. Apparently I'm not the only you've stopped owling recently and it's got the women in our family a little upset at you."

"About that, I've just been busy lately, with all the hatchings and new dragons we've got at the reserve, and did I tell you about the promotion I got?"

"Charlie you're rambling, you don't ramble unless you're nervous. What's going on?"

It was nerve racking waiting on Charlie and Bill to come in from the kitchen, she'd moved to the chair in order to give them space on the couch to sit but now she couldn't sit still.

"Hermione you're making me nervous. You've got to sit still or he's definitely going to suspect something."

After what felt like an eternity to Hermione, Bill and Charlie emerged from the kitchen five glasses of coke floating in front of them. It was a muggle movie night after all. Charlie shot her a look as he noticed that she had vacated what had been their spot on the couch. It was enough for him to realize that she was doing her best to keep Bill in the dark.

It has been three months since Hermione had moved to Romania, two months since they'd been on their first date and about a week and a half since Charlie had given her a toothbrush of her own in his bathroom. They just weren't ready yet to face the rest of his family until they were sure of what was going on with them. Bill's surprise arrival had rattled them both.

Halfway through the movie Arianna was all but a part of James she was huddled so close to him and Hermione was slowly becoming a part of the chair. The sound of her name caused Hermione to jump straight up in the air. "Hermione," Bill said again through his laughter, "you're about to scare yourself to death over there get over on this couch with us." Hermione jumped over the couch pulling her blanket with her and huddled on the couch between the two brothers. The blanket pulled up to her nose.

Charlie sat straight as a board next to her on the couch. It was all he could do not to pull Hermione in close to him as she huddled in fear next to him. He couldn't concentrate on watching the movie; he was still trying to figure out what to do about Bill. He'd never kept a secret from his older brother. He was the only one, other than Hermione now, that knew that he had moved to Romania not only because of his love of dragons but to escape the din of his family. The only who knew absolutely everything about him, except for this one thing. He just couldn't wrap his mind around how he would act. Hermione was so much younger, not to mention she had spent several years in an on and off again relationship with their youngest brother.

Arianna yawned as the credits rolled and Charlie flicked the lights on with his wand. "Well as…interesting…as this has been, we've got to get going. I've got to work in the morning and I'm exhausted." She pulled James up out of his seat. Hermione stretched and stood up too, she and Charlie both had the day off tomorrow, but it was quiet obvious that their plans had changed. "I'll walk out with you guys, I've got to get home too. I've got a mound of paperwork stacking up that I should tackle tomorrow."

Bill was dozing slightly on the couch; apparently the movie hadn't bothered him at all. "I'll walk you guys out." Charlie said, placing his hand on Hermione's back and leading them to the door. Once outside Arianna hugged Hermione, "Tomorrow when I get off you've got a lot of explaining to do." Hermione hugged her back. "It's a date." She replied as James came over and disapparated them both. Charlie pulled the door shut behind him, leaving them alone in the light from the porch. "Oh Charlie," Hermione sighed as he pulled her into his chest.

"It's so hard to keep this from him." Charlie mumbled into the top of her hair.

She pulled back enough that she could look up into his face, searching his eyes. "Charlie, I think you should tell him." Charlie couldn't believe his ears, was she really telling him that he should tell their secret? She could see the disbelief in his eyes and pulled away to sit on the steps. She waited until he joined her to continue. "It's just that I know how much he means to you, and how hard it is to keep it a secret. Did I tell you I flooed with Gin this morning?" He shook his head and wrapped his arm around her. There was a chill to the night air and it was causing her to shiver. "She kept telling me that she could just tell that there was a new man in my life and pestering me all about it. She's my best friend, especially now that she's married to Harry. I didn't tell her though because I'm not ready."

"Hermione this is not helping explain why you think I should tell Bill." His voice was gruff and she knew that he was getting impatient. She angled herself so she could see his face better,

"Charlie, Ginny and I have been friends for years, but Charlie has been your brother and your best friend for 35 years. If you want to tell him you should. Just…just ask him not to tell anyone." They stood and Charlie pulled her in for a kiss, "Let me know what you decide, okay? I really do have a lot to get done. I'll spend the whole day doing paperwork if I don't watch it." Charlie laughed and leaned in to kiss her again, before she pulled back and left for home.

Bill crept to the window, he was curious as to what was going on when Charlie didn't return right away. He had a feeling that there was more going on when he arrived than just a movie night with a couple of friends, there was Charlie's nervous talking, and the fact that it wasn't friends but a couple in the other room. He slipped the curtain open enough to see Arianna and James disapparate and Charlie pull Hermione to him. "This is certainly a surprise." Bill said to himself as he banished the bowls and cups into the kitchen.

"I was about to think you were leaving me here on my own." Bill called as Charlie reentered the house. "Is there something you would like to tell me?"

"Is it that obvious?" Charlie said as he sat in the chair Hermione had vacated out of fear, conjuring himself a glass of firewhiskey.

Bill laughed, "I'm not sure what was more obvious, your nervous talking, her shock at seeing me here, you watching her all night, or you kissing her goodnight. What are you hiding?"

Charlie ran his hand through his hair as he settled back to tell his brother everything.


	6. Chapter 6

Hermione looked up as Twink entered the room. "Ms. Granger." She chirped, "Mr. Weasley and another friend are here to see you."

"Thanks Twink. Now don't forget that you have the night off tonight." Twink bobbed her head and disappeared from the room.

"Hermione lives here? It's twice the size of Grimwauld." Bill said as he looked around, "sure is a step up from her apartment in London."

Charlie grinned at his older brother, "I'm going to head down to the office and get her; otherwise we could be standing here for a while." Charlie loped off down the hall, sticking his head into Hermione's home office, he grinned at her. "I told Bill if someone didn't actually come and get you that you wouldn't come out."

Hermione waved at him but didn't look up as she finished scanning over the documents in front of her. "Come on, Hermione. Bill's waiting downstairs, says he wants to meet my new girlfriend."

She looked up at him from the corner of her eyes, "From that statement, you've either told your brother or you're dating my house elf."

"I did catch Twink giving me the eye last week. You really think she's interested?"

Hermione just shook her head at him and went back to her papers. "I promise I just need five more minutes to look over this and then I'll be down."

Hermione stopped in the doorway of the kitchen, Charlie and Bill had made their way there when Hermione's five minutes became more like twenty, and stopped in the doorway. She and Bill weren't extremely close but she looked up to him and liked to think they were at least friends. Her fears were for nothing though; Bill smiled when he saw her standing there and moved over to hug her, "I hear you've been keeping a secret?"

"Guess not anymore." She said, "It's actually nice to have someone know. So what are you boys up to tonight?"

"We were actually hoping that you'd join us for dinner. I thought we could take Bill to that place we found downtown a couple of weeks ago."

Bill smiled to himself as he watched the two of them together. It was obvious they were comfortable together; he wasn't sure how they were going to keep this a secret from anyone who knew the two of them for long.

Charlie unconsciously leaned back in his chair and put his arm around the back of Hermione's. She had been right earlier, not that she wasn't always, it was nice to have someone know what was going on. He may not like the in your face style of life at the burrow but he loved his family more than anything. "It's actually all Mum's fault, all those years of trying to play matchmaker for me and she overlooked the one woman who was right under her nose."

Hermione snorted, "Yeah, I can see that now." She leaned forward and put her hands on her hips, changing her voice into an exact imitation of Molly, "My poor Charlie, all alone in Romania, with no one to cook for him or take care of him when those horrible dragons are mean to him. You know who would be good for him? That nice girl from down the lane might work. Hmm No, and I already tried that girl he dated his seventh year. Oh I've got it! Little Ronnie's friend, Hermione. She'll be perfect!"

Bill and Charlie were doubled over laughing at her. It was a well-known fact that now that all but one of her children were involved in relationships she was focusing all her energies on finding someone for the last single male Weasley. Even Ron was dating Luna pretty seriously now. Charlie placed his hand on her knee, "That's exactly why we aren't telling anyone yet, Bill. We talked about it and we just don't want to have to worry about the pressure that comes with being in a relationship with a Weasley."

Hermione smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes, "Plus, Ron is one of my best friends and while we haven't been together in years I don't think he's going to take the news well."

"You two know you can't keep this a secret for forever? Eventually you'll both be back at the Burrow at the same time and unless your acting skills improve greatly before then they are going to figure it out."

"We know. We've decided that if things are still going as well as they are now at Christmas then we'll tell them then. That way we're both there and everyone will be together."

Hermione was about to speak when Bill held up his hand to interrupt her. "I'll keep your secret, but you all have to come clean soon. It's not fair to everyone else for you to lie to them."

When they were finished eating their meal, Charlie excused himself to say hello to someone he had spotted earlier. Hermione and Bill gathered their things and went outside. "You and I have known each other for a long time and I've always been little bushy haired know-it-all Hermione, or Ron's friend, or part of the Trio. Here I get to stand on my own two feet and make decisions without anyone expecting me to be that person. Yes, my relationship with Harry and Ron will always affect how people see me and they, and your whole family, are a large part of who I am but here I get to be who I really am now. And that's why we want to keep this a secret. Charlie was always away when I came to the Burrow during the summers, I don't know him the way I know you. Bill, you've been my big brother now for several years, but with Charlie it isn't like that. It's why this works so well for us. I don't see him as just another Weasley and he sees more than the eleven year old girl who met Ron at school." Bill slung his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in for a hug.

"It's been a long time since you've been just the girl that followed Ron home Hermione. We all love you very much. You're one of us now."

Hermione smiled up at him, "Thanks Bill. That really does mean a lot to me."


	7. Chapter 7

Charlie stopped Hermione before he opened the door to her house. "How was your day?"

"It's been great. I just…"

"Just what sweetheart?"

"I hate being so far away from everybody."

Charlie smiled at her, "We'll be home for Christmas soon." He leaned down and kissed her, then pushed her ahead of him into the house.

"There you are dear, where have you been you're almost late for your birthday dinner." Hermione couldn't believe her eyes, there was her mother standing right in front of her.

"Mum!" she exclaimed throwing her arms around her, "what are you doing here?"

"It's your birthday dear, of course we all came."

"All?"

"Hermione get in here the food is getting cold!" George said poking his head around the corner.

Hermione entered the dining room, they really had all came, her mum and dad, all of the Weasley's, and Harry.

"I can't believe you're all here!" she exclaimed as everyone came to hug her, even Charlie's friends that she had become close to, James and Arianna, were there to celebrate her day. "Ari! We had lunch today and you didn't say a word! And Charlie! I had no idea!"

Hermione set on the stairwell, watching her friends and family interacting below. "There you are darling." Her mom said sitting next to her, "Your dad and Arthur are off talking about spark plugs or something." She smiled at her daughter, "You look really good dear."

"Thanks Mum," she leaned in to her mom, "I really miss you and dad, but I love it here."

"That wouldn't have anything to do with a certain red-headed man would it?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Hermione said and ducked her head.

"Dear, you may be able to hide from everyone else but I am your mother, I know you."

"He's pretty great, isn't he?" Hermione finally said.

"Oh dear. He's simply wonderful; you do know this whole thing was his idea don't you? He called us about a month ago, told us how much you missed us and arranged everything for us to get here. Wouldn't even let us pay for our own plane tickets, said it was his birthday present to you. Can you imagine?"

Hermione searched him out with her eyes; he was surrounded by his brothers. Bill caught her gaze and discreetly nudged Charlie. The rest of the Weasley's were so caught up in the conversation about Quidditch that they didn't notice. Charlie smiled at her and escaped their circle to join the two women on the stairs. "Are you two having a good time?"

"The best, mum just told me how you arranged everything. We both agree that you're pretty great."

"It seems like you're looking out for my baby girl pretty well Charlie."

"I'm trying." He said, flashing his trademark Weasley grin. "I better move on, my mum's been watching the two of us pretty hard tonight." He leaned in and whispered. "Don't want her to start trying to play matchmaker."

Jean wanted until he was back with his brothers, "Do any of them know?"

"He's told his brother Bill and of course James and Arianna know."

"They don't count dear. When are you going to tell everyone?"

"Christmas, we'll both be home then and it won't be suspicious."

"Dear I think you could walk in straddling him and they would think you had hurt yourself and he was just helping you in." Jean laughed, "I'm impressed at your ability to hide it so well or is this not as serious as I think?"

"It's been six months now. I know he loves me, and mum I love him so much it scares me sometimes."

Jean hugged her daughter, "If we don't get a chance before we leave, you'll bring him home to us at Christmas so we can spend some time with him."

"Of course Mum."

"Good," she said, standing and pulling Hermione up with her, "now get back to your party."

Eventually it was just Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Ginny left downstairs. Ginny was sleeping on the couch, leaving the three friends alone for the first time in almost a year. Ron eventually dozed off in his chair and was snoring so loud Hermione was afraid he might wake the rest of the house. She motioned for Harry to join her in the kitchen. "How are things with Gin?" she asked as she poured them both a cup of hot chocolate.

Harry grinned at her, "Wonderful, we haven't told anyone yet but she's pregnant."

"Harry, that's amazing! I'm so happy for you two! How far along is she?"

Harry laughed at her, "We just found out last week, she's going to be so mad that I told you. She made me promise I would let her tell. She's really missed you, and apparently your letters and floo calls have been few and far between."

"I miss her too, and you and Ron and everyone. It's harder than I thought to be so far away but I've made some good friends here and I think even when I come back to England I'll miss here almost as much as I missed home." Hermione smiled at Harry, "How'd we move so quickly into something so depressing? Harry I'm so happy for the two of you."

Harry grinned, "It's all I can do not to grin all the time. I've never been so happy.

"Can I tell you something? The thing is you have to keep it from Ginny and I know how much you hate that."

Concerned darkened Harry's eyes, "Hermione, you can tell me anything. Is this about Charlie? Has he done something to you? The two of you were acting strange around each other tonight."

Hermione laughed, "Harry no it's nothing like that, it's the opposite actually. We've been seeing each other for six months now. I love him."

Harry just sat there and didn't speak; neither of them had noticed the back door to the kitchen open and shut. "It's true Harry." Charlie said sitting down next to Hermione and taking a drink of her hot chocolate.

"Harry? Say something. You're the only person I've told you have to at least respond."

"I'm the only one who knows?"

"Bill knows," Charlie answered, "Fleur may know but if so she hasn't said anything about it."

Harry reached over and took Hermione's hand, "I'm happy for you, and I'll let you tell Gin in your own time." He sat back, "Just know that she's going to be pissed that neither of you told her. When are you going to tell Ron?"

"Tell Ron what?" the man in question said from the doorway. "Charlie? When'd you come back?"

"I left something here I need for work in the morning, I brought it along to show Dad."

In his sleepy state Ron completely missed the tenseness in the room, "Now what are you telling me?"

Hermione racked her brain; this was not the time nor was it the place for Ron to find out. "I was just telling Harry about one of the perks of this job. I have my own box for the World Cup and was hoping you all would come along."


	8. Chapter 8

"It's just one game, it won't kill you to go. Ari sent this for you to wear." Charlie said handing Hermione a box.

"Charlie, it's not that I don't want to go, you know that, I'm swamped at work right now."

"Hermione, you've been swamped at work for weeks now!"

"Exactly! I don't have any time!"

"Exactly." Charlie said, defeated, as he walked out of the house. Hermione grabbed her bag, turned on the spot and was gone.

She was exhausted. Hermione had spent the morning arguing with the head of the Romanian Ministry's Muggle Relations Department on numerous pointless problems. She collapsed onto the couch in her office and threw and arm over her eyes to block out the light.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Hermione jumped when she heard the angry voice coming from her fireplace. "You're taking a nap in your office?"

"I just got in; it has been a long day Ari. Don't start with me."

Arianna's head disappeared from the fireplace and Hermione sighed and lay back down on her couch. The quite didn't last for long though as Arianna stepped through the fireplace. "Hermione what's going on?" she said sitting next to her friend.

Hermione leaned over, resting her head on Ari's shoulder. "I'm so swamped here at work. I had a fight with Charlie. I miss home."

Ari leaned her head so that it was resting on Hermione's before she began to talk. "So why not come with us today and have some fun. Don't try and tell me you're too busy. It's a Saturday no one is going to mind if you take the day off since technically you aren't even supposed to be in the office on Saturdays." She took Hermione's sigh as giving in and jumped up from the couch, fast enough that it pushed Hermione over sideways. "Now where is that box I sent with Charlie?"

Hermione pointed towards the box that was sitting on her desk under a pile of folders. "Good you brought it with you that is one less stop we have to make."

Charlie laughed as the fireworks chased James around and then shot off into the sky forming the shape of a dragon. "George where are you?" he yelled, looking around him. George stepped out of the shadows created by the stands and came over to hug his brother.

"I decided to deliver a shipment myself so I could stop in and see my long lost brother. Much to my surprise when I showed up at your house there was a note in your kitchen saying you were here." George grinned, "I'm just wondering, oh bachelor brother of mine, who that note was for?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Charlie said, shoving his brother off towards the stands, "but I have to go get ready." George laughed as he made his way up to where Charlie had directed him to sit.

The game was well on its way when George was distracted by the sound of apparition below him, whoever it was definitely wasn't trying to be quiet about it. The women were giggling and laughing and passing out cups of something to the people around them. There was something about the brown-haired girl that he couldn't place. She finally sat down and turned her attention to the game. It was then that George saw his last name plastered across her upper back. "I guess in this case it's actually Charlie's last name." He thought to himself, "I think I'll go down there and see who this mystery woman is." He got up from his seat and was almost to her when he was stopped dead in his tracks.

Hermione laughed, it was probably the first time she had really laughed since her birthday the month before. She pointed her wand at her throat, "sonorous, Come on Weasley, my muggle grandmother feints better than that!" her voice boomed across the small stadium. The girl next to her almost fell off her seat she was laughing uncontrollably as Charlie circled the stadium, once again on the search for the snitch, but not before looking over at the girl and laughing.

"Hermione?" George questioned, moving down further towards the girl. She whirled around, her hair flying out around her.

"George!" She exclaimed, making her way past the girls sitting around her and coming out to hug him.

"Are you? The note? Charlie?" George pushed out the words as if he had lost understanding of the English language.

"George? Are you okay?" Hermione asked, leading him over to wear she had been sitting.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm great. I was just surprised to see you here! Little Miss Have to Work No Time for Fun Can't Even Floo My Family." Hermione laughed at him. "Ari, over there dragged me from the office this afternoon. Told me I needed to have a little fun."

"It's true!" Ari looked like she was going to say more but her attention was taken away by James who was flying with the quaffle towards the goal. "Go baby Go!" she yelled, jumping up and down. Hermione joined in with the celebration as James' goal pushed their team even farther into the lead.

Three hours into the game, Charlie finally caught the snitch. "Finally!" Hermione exclaimed, making George laugh. The stands began to empty, but Hermione and Ari made no signs of moving so George sat back down in front of Hermione. "What are you doing here?" she asked him.

"Wow, Granger, missed you too."

"You know I didn't mean it like that George!" she nudged him with the leg she had resting on the back of the seats in front of her. "What are you doing in Romania?"

"Brought a delivery of W's up for our new store and thought I'd swing by and see Charlie. Speaking of him, I should probably see if I can find him around here somewhere."

"Oh no worries," Arianna said, jumping into the conversation, "Weasley, won't go anywhere without finding Hermione here, especially since he's seen her in his jersey."

"Ari!" Hermione pushed her friend over, "She's being silly George, just ignore her, she's on a high from the game."

"They're coming out of the locker room, let's go down and meet them." Ari said grabbing Hermione's hand. George slowly followed them down. "Come on George," she yelled back at him.

Charlie grabbed Hermione around the waist and spun her around when she reached him. "So your grandmother plays better than that huh?"

Hermione smiled up at him, "She being recruited for the British World Cup Team as we speak." Charlie laughed and kissed her.

"Do my eyes and ear deceive me?" George said walking up behind the two.

"Oh yeah, George is here." Charlie smiled down at her, still not letting her go, shrugging he laughed, "well three down seven to go."


	9. Chapter 9

"Charlie?" Hermione rolled over so that she was facing him. "Will you do something for me?"

Charlie opened his eyes and looked at her. Her hair was a mess, and she was wearing one of his old t-shirts. "Anything."

She laughed, "You might want to wait to see what I want before you go that far. I need a date."

Charlie pulled her towards him and kissed her, "I think I fall under that category."

"I need a date to the National Day Celebration. I have to attend the ball the Minister is throwing."

Charlie groaned and rolled over so that he was staring at the ceiling or at least he was until her curls blocked his view as she moved to straddle him. "It won't be that bad." She said, leaning down and kissing his neck. "In fact, I've got my eyes on this dress that I think you'll like very much."

"If I agree to go with you will there be more of this?" He smirked as he reversed their positions.

"Oh I can guarantee that." She said, pulling his face down to hers.

"Charlie you'll just have to meet me there. I know it's not what we had planned but I barely have time to get dressed. I don't have time to leave work. I had to send someone back to the house to get my dress."

"Hermione, calm down, tonight will be a great night; I don't mind meeting you there. That actually gives me time to finish the paperwork that I have to do."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, now get out of my fireplace so we can both get some work done."

Charlie walked into the ballroom at the Romanian Ministry and grabbed two flutes of champagne from a passing waiter before seeking out his date. He spotted her talking to a tall blonde haired man. "Couldn't find anyone desperate enough to escort you tonight Granger?" the man sneered at her. Charlie quickened his pace.

"At least I'm not here with my mother Ferret." Charlie had almost reached the pair when he stopped in shock. Hermione threw her arms around the man and enveloped him in a friendly hug.

"Hermione what's going on?" He said handing her the drink he had brought her. She turned and smiled at him before standing on her tiptoes to kiss him. Turning back she gestured to the man in front of her, "This is Draco Malfoy, we went to Hogwarts together and I worked with his mother on some advisory boards before I came here. Drake, this is Charlie Weasley." The two men shook hands.

"You must be one of Ron's brothers." Draco said. "What are you doing in Romania?"

"I work on the dragon reserve right outside of town." Charlie answered, he liked that this man didn't flinch when he told him what he did.

"You'll have to tell me all about it. I've been interested in dragons since I was a small boy." He turned his attention back to Hermione, "Has mother seen you? She was hoping you would be here."

Hermione sipped at her champagne as she watched Charlie and Draco. He had really changed after the war, Hermione wouldn't have given him the time of day though had it not been for Narcissa, now she was glad that she had. He was probably one of the best people she knew. She was brought out of her recollections as Narcissa wrapped her slender arms around her. "Hermione, dear, I was hoping you would be here tonight. You haven't been answering my owls as frequently as I expected you would."

"I've been hearing that a lot lately." Hermione smiled as the woman took in the man standing next to her. "Narcissa, this is Charlie Weasley."

"It's wonderful to meet you dear. Am I to assume that you are the reason our Hermione has been so occupied lately?"

Charlie laughed and took her outstretched hand, "I'm afraid I may be part of that reason." He said snaking his arm around Hermione's waist, "You can blame most of it on her job though, even I barely see her some weeks."

Narcissa's eye glinted as she took in the two, for a while she had high hopes that Hermione would end up with her son but the two had never been inclined towards each other as anything other than friends.

"You two wouldn't mind if I steal her away for a dance would you?" They both told them to go on and Charlie swept her off towards the dance floor.

"I thought I was going to have to rescue you for a minute there."

"What?"

"When I walked up I thought he was being mean to you. I was about to let him know that was not acceptable, break out my dragon wrestling moves in case he still wasn't sure."

Hermione laughed as Charlie spun her around, "That's just something that we do. We didn't get along in school."

"Wait? Is that the same Malfoy that tortured you in school?"

"One and the same, your sister hit him with a pretty mean bat bogey hex once." Hermione laughed as Charlie winced, "Seems like you have some experience yourself with that particular talent of Gin's."

Charlie grimaced as he pulled Hermione closer to him and continued to dance.

Hermione and Charlie headed back over to the Malfoy's. Narcissa and Hermione caught up on the foundations they were apart of while Charlie watched, Draco was off dancing with several different women. Hermione's hand found its way over to his knee, as he rested his arm against the back of her chair. Narcissa smiled at the couple in front of her. After a few minutes, Charlie spotted someone he knew and made his excuses from the women.

Narcissa leaned in towards Hermione, "Alright dear, I want to know everything. How did you meet him? How long have you been together? Is it serious?"

Hermione laughed and answered her questions, "He's Ron Weasley's older brother, and we've been dating for about nine months now. I know I love him and that he loves me, as for serious, well…" Hermione trailed off and fiddled with her cup.

Narcissa placed her hand over Hermione's to still it. "The two of you haven't talked about that yet have you?"

"No, we've been so preoccupied with how to tell his family and we've both been so busy at work that we haven't really talked about it." Hermione looked up and found Charlie in the thinning crowd of people, "I don't know what I'd do without him. I'll be perfectly alright; I know that, it's just." She paused and looked back at Narcissa, "I don't want to be without him, ever."

Narcissa smiled and patter her hand, "If the way he's been tonight is any indication of how he is then I'd say he feels the same way dear."

Draco and Charlie headed back towards the two women, "Mum, we need to get going." Narcissa stood and hugged Hermione. "I want to see you when you come home dear."

Charlie pulled Hermione close and apparated them back to his house. "You were right, I do like this dress." He said, leaning down to kiss her. Her hands fisted in his shirt as he lifted her up onto her toes, deepening the kiss.

"Are you working tomorrow?" he asked when he pulled back from her.

"Definitely not." She said replied as she led him up the stairs.


	10. Chapter 10

"Just don't touch me! Better yet Charlie do not talk to me or look in my direction unless it is vital to the survival of the human race!" She stormed out ahead of him and apparated off, Charlie was close on her heels still pulling on his coat as he followed her.

"This is ridiculous Hermione; you can't expect us to go the whole night without talking to each other."

"Look I wouldn't even be here if I didn't want to see Ari and James. If I had it my way I wouldn't be close enough to you to even see you." Hermione walked into the restaurant not bothering to see if the door stayed open long enough for Charlie to walk through and moved straight over to Arianna, who was pretending that she hadn't just been watching the couple through the large front window. Ari wrapped Hermione in a large hug before glaring at Charlie.

"What happened?" she whispered into Hermione's ear.

"I don't want to talk about it now. I just want to have a nice evening with the two of you."

Ari could have cut the tension at the table with a knife; instead she sawed into her steak. A week ago when Arianna and Hermione had lunch everything had been fine with her the couple sitting across for them. Tonight was a completely different story. Hermione sat rigid in her chair, as far away from Charlie as possible, and hadn't looked in his direction at all in the past thirty minutes. Charlie however kept glancing over at Hermione, as if trying to see if she was crumbling at all in her resolve. She wasn't.

The two couples stood to put on their coats to leave the restaurant; Charlie picked up Hermione's coat and held it out to help her put it on. She snatched it from his hands and tried, unsuccessfully, to put it on for herself. He snatched it out of her hand and held it out for her again. "Just put your arms in and let's get out of here."

Charlie curtly said goodbye to James and Ari and before Hermione could protest he pulled her to him and apparated the two of them back to his house. He marched into the house, his grip on her arm unrelenting as she struggled to keep up with his pace. She stumbled as he let go of her arm and whirled around to face her. "What is wrong with you?"

That did it. "What's wrong with me? What do you mean what's wrong with me?" Hermione was fuming, "You're what's wrong with me!"

"I am! What the hell did I do?"

Hermione balled her hands up into fists, "I'm not playing this game with you Charlie! If you don't know what you did then you're so ridiculous that I can't stand the thought of even being in the same room with you!" She grabbed a handful of floo powder and threw it in the fireplace, "You figure out what happened and you let me know. I want to see how long it takes the great Charlie Weasley to figure it out."

Hermione flooed back to her empty house, it was cold and lonely, even the house elf that normally greeted her had the night off. She stepped back into fire and reappeared a few minutes later as she stumbled out of the fire in Ari's kitchen.

"Did you hear that?"

"Sounded like someone flooed into the kitchen." She said not looking up from her book until she heard another sound. Her head jerked up, "Is that someone crying?" Ari unfolded her legs from under her and stood from the chair. "I'll go."

James stood up and grabbed her arm. "You really think I'm letting you go in there to confront a stranger?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

Ari laughed, "Of course not, dear, however, unless I'm greatly mistaken the woman sobbing in my kitchen is Hermione." She kissed James, "I'm going to take care of her; you might want to go check on Charlie."

James knocked on the front door of Charlie's. There was no answer. He tried the door, it was open. "Charlie?" Still nothing. The lights were all on and there was a fire going strong in the fireplace. Someone had been there recently. "Weasley, where are you mate?" There was no answer. James searched through the rooms on both floors and still couldn't find anyone. Returning to the living room he grabbed a handful of powder and flooed to the next place he could think of. He banged on the door of Hermione's house. He barged in when the door was opened, scaring the house elf who had opened it.

"How can I help you sir?"

"I'm looking for Charlie Weasley. Is he here?"

"No sirs. He's not here. Ms. Hermione came and left and he was not here with my missus."

James turned to leave but was stopped by a small hand on his pant leg. "My missus was crying, he hurt her and I will not be happy."

James smiled down at the house elf, "I understand Tippy. You don't need to worry though Hermione is just fine."

James finally found him at this next stop, the pub downtown; it's where they went when they'd had a hard day at work, when they had something to celebrate. It was also where Charlie had taken Hermione on their first night out. "He's halfway through a second bottle." The bartender said when he noticed James. "That's not like him at all."

"Thanks," James said, ignoring the barkeep. The man spent too much time meddling in other people's business for James's taste. He walked over and slid into the booth seat across from Charlie. He conjured himself a glass and poured himself some firewhiskey. They sat there in silence while Charlie finished off his glass; no one spoke as he laid his head back against the booth and sighed. No one spoke as they gathered coats and James apparated them back to Charlie's house.

"Drink this." James said, handing Charlie a glass of potion. "Then you're going to tell me why Hermione is crying in my kitchen causing my wife to ban me from the house and why you drank more tonight than you have in the last six months."

Charlie downed the potion and apparated out.

He was banging on the front door when a very angry Arianna answered the door. "What. Do. You. Want." She forced out, trying to keep her calm.

"I want to talk to Hermione."

"And what if she doesn't want to talk to you?"

"She doesn't" Charlie and Arianna both looked in the direction the voice had come from. Hermione was standing in the hall, her eyes red rimmed and puffy,

"I'm sorry."

"For what Charlie?" She sighed when he didn't answer. "That's what I thought." She turned and walked out of sight.

Before Ari shut the door she whispered to Charlie, "Look, This may all be a misunderstanding I don't know but just try and figure it out alright."

James was sitting on the couch flipping through Quidditch Monthly when Charlie stepped out of the fireplace. "What'd they say?"

Charlie flopped down on the couch and put his feet up on his coffee table. Hermione would have told him to take his shoes off. "I apologized and she asked what for. I didn't know. Then she walked away and Ari told me to think about it. This was much easier when I was a carefree bachelor laughing at your problems."

James laughed, "Welcome to my life, mate."

Charlie staggered in from work and collapsed on the couch. One of the regular trainers was on vacation with his family and Charlie had volunteered to step in during his absence. His muscles ached in a familiar and welcome way; he'd been behind a desk far too long. His body longed to stretch out across his couch but he needed to have the burn on his arm checked. He groaned, it was a Wednesday; Ari wouldn't be at the clinic today, and turned to head towards her house.

"It's been almost a week Ari. He either has no clue or he doesn't care enough to figure it out."

"I highly doubt it's the second option. He's crazy about you."

Charlie stopped outside of the back door. He knew he shouldn't eavesdrop but he'd exhausted every reason he could think of that Hermione would be this upset with him. He'd remember her birthday, hell he'd thrown her a party and flown in her parents, he'd accompanied her to the National Day Ball, and he'd taken her out for their anniversary. Wait. He had done that, right? Last week.

He knocked and stepped in the back door. Hermione and Ari looked up at him from the table as he came in. "Could you take a look at this burn for me? I knew you weren't at the clinic today, Ari. It's not bad but there's a higher chance of infection from the…" he trailed off as he watched Hermione, her eyes taking in the burns on his arm. "It's not as bad as it looks."

Hermione sat down her tea and walked over to where he leaned against the counter. Ari was rummaging in the cabinets for something when there was a knock on the front door. "Here Hermione cover the burn with this I need to see who that is." She said and walked from the room. Ari smiled at the man on her doorstep. "You know you don't have to knock on the door."

"I saw Charlie coming this way and thought maybe if there was someone at the door you could get them alone."

"That's why I love you." Ari said leaning in to kiss her husband.

Hermione opened the lid on the bottle as Charlie pushed up his sleeve. "What happened?"

"Dragon." He knew she rolled her eyes at that even though all he could see was the top of her head. Her fingers were gentle as she worked the ointment onto the burn.

She could feel the heat radiating off him she was standing so close. She had to get away or her resolve was going to break. She snapped the lid back on and moved to wash her hands. "Just don't look at him" was the mantra rolling through her head as she dried her hands on the towel. That was working fine until he pulled on the other end of the towel, bringing her close again.

"I didn't realize."

She looked up.

"I didn't realize that I had forgotten. I had made plans, they were good too."

"I wasn't mad that you forgot." It came out so quiet he almost missed it. He didn't speak, afraid she would leave. "I was angry because you didn't realize anything was wrong. You just kept going like everything was fine."

"That doesn't make any sense."

Hermione pushed back from him. "Maybe not to you!" she crossed her arms over her chest, "When you didn't come when you said you would I thought okay well he has to work late. I went to your house to wait for you. That way we could just go together when you were ready. Then an hour passed and another and then another. Next thing I know it's eleven and there I am on your couch wearing a new dress and starving." She paused. "When you finally came in, you walked right past me, you jerk, straight into the kitchen to make yourself something to eat."

He reached his arm out for her, but she held up her hand to stop him. "I'm not some ridiculous girl Charlie; I don't get angry because you look in the direction of another girl. I don't bother you when you have to work late or leave for extended periods of time for your job. In fact I enjoy that you're so dedicated to the things that you love; however, Charlie, I refuse to go unnoticed."

He crossed the room to her in two strides. "You're right I didn't see you there. Hermione, it was late and I was exhausted. I barely remember even coming in off the field that night. Life with me is going to be like that at times. It's been just me for a long time now and I'm used to that. It doesn't mean I love you any less or that I don't want to be with you. It's just me."

Hermione leaned her head against his chest as Charlie slowly wrapped his arms around her. "I'm still mad at you."

"You're talking to me. You have to be less mad than you were." He tipped her chin up so that she was looking at him. "How about I make it up to you tonight?"

"You can try." She smirked, a handy habit Draco had taught her, before leaning up on her tiptoes and kissing him.


	11. Chapter 11

Hermione sighed, contented, as Charlie pulled her back against his chest. "I have a lot to get done before we leave." Hermione moved to stand; Charlie's arm snaked around her and held her against his chest.

"It can wait."

"No it really can't. I'll be back in England for two weeks and there is too much work that still needs to be done before I can go. As it is I'm taking paperwork with me on vacation." She struggled against his hold.

"You're not going anywhere."

Hermione stopped struggling against his hold and settled back against him, staring at the fireplace.

"You're still thinking about work aren't you?"

Charlie felt her smile against his chest. "Maybe. What about you?"

"You…well us."

He felt her stiffen against him as he played with her fingers, intertwined with his own. "What about us Charlie?"

"_This is not happening_." Hermione thought to herself, "_Why isn't he saying anything?"_

This time when she pulled away from him he didn't stop her. "Charlie?" She couldn't quite see his face, the light from the fire hiding it in shadow.

"Where do you see yourself in ten years Hermione?"

_"Oh this is not good."_ Hermione couldn't help where her mind was going. _"Get a grip Hermione, you helped defeat Voldemort, you can talk to Charlie."_ She took a deep breathe and turned to face him fully. "I want a family of my own. I will be working in some capacity to better the lives of those who are unfairly persecuted." She looked in his eyes for the first time, "I want to be in England, so my kids can grow up surrounded by family."

"That's important to you isn't it."

"Of course it is Charlie, my family is there, my work is there, it's home." Hermione didn't protest when he pulled her back down against him. She was too afraid to ask him where he saw himself, to afraid that his answer would break her heart.

* * *

"We've got to go, if we aren't at the embassy in ten minutes we're going to miss the portkey home and I refuse to miss it Charlie!" Hermione yelled up the stairs. When she arrived twenty minutes ago the house was a mess and Charlie hadn't even started packing for the trip back to England. "It's Christmas for crying out loud!"

"Exactly, love, now why don't you calm down. I'll be ready to go in no time."

Hermione stormed up the stairs, "Do not talk to me like I am seven years old Charles Weasley or I will hex you from here to Tuesday."

"Uh oh, sounds like someone is in a bad mood." Charlie teased as Hermione came into his line of sight at the top of the stares. "Come on, where's your Christmas spirit?"

"Hidden somewhere in this mess you call home." She smirked back at him. "Now come on." With a flick and a swish of her wand she had his clothes packing and the items in the house returning to their rightful homes.

"It seems we're ready to go. Where are your bags?"

"Downstairs in my coat, I shrunk them so I wouldn't lose anything."

"Of course you did." Charlie said, as he pulled her to him, his mouth hovering millimeters above hers. "Do we have to go? I think we should just stay here and do this." He murmured, his hands running down her sides.

Hermione laughed, as she pushed him backwards. "We can't just stay here Charlie. We have to go home. It has been too long since either of us has seen our families."

"You sure?" He asked, looping a finger through a belt loop on her jeans and pulling her in again. "We won't be able to do this." He breathed, trailing kisses along her jaw, "Or this," He ran his free hand under her shirt over her abdomen. Her breathe hitched as he grazed her breast with his fingers.

"Maybe we have some time."

"I don't think so." He said removing his hands and throwing his bag over his shoulder. "Let's go down and get your things before we apparate to the Embassy." She growled and pushed him out the door. Throwing on her coat she stepped outside and took Charlie's waiting hand as he apparated them off.

Ten minutes later they were standing in the middle of the International Portkey Arrivals Section at the Ministry of Magic. "Welcome home, love." Charlie said, holding her steady as she regained her balance.

"I still haven't completely mastered the art of landing gracefully after a trip like that." Charlie watched her as she moved until she was standing on her tip toes and kissed his cheek. "I'll see you in a bit for dinner. I want to change and unpack before seeing everyone."

"Wait. What?" He said following her towards the apparition points. "You aren't staying at the Burrow?"

"Of course not, Charlie, I have a perfectly wonderful apartment of my own and a bed that has been calling my name since I left. I have missed my mattress. Tell Molly not to wait for me, I'll be over as soon as I can." She stepped back and apparated away before he could respond.

Hermione smiled as she stepped into her apartment. It was small but it was home. Harry and Ron had helped her move in a year after they graduated from Hogwarts and she had been there ever since. Her parents kept encouraging her to move someplace bigger, maybe even into a nicer, safer, neighborhood. That always made her laugh; her apartment was the safest around with all the wards that had been placed over it. Even she had to concentrate hard to be able to find it and it was her home. She enlarged her bags and levitated them into the bedroom. She let out a happy sigh, sitting on the edge of her bed, maybe a few minutes worth of a nap wouldn't hurt.

* * *

"Charlie! There you are. We've been waiting for you!" Molly Weasley said as she wrapped her second oldest son in an enormous hug.

"Mum I'm half an hour earlier than I told you I would be."

"That's not important! We haven't seen you since Hermione's birthday. Where is she?" He laughed and slung an arm around his mothers shoulder.

"Hermione went to her place after we arrived back home, said she wanted to unpack and change before she came over. She didn't want us to wait for her either."

They had just finished eating dinner, Molly had banished the dishes into the kitchen to clean and the children were running around the living room like it was a playground.

"Aunt Nene?" A small voice called to her from the doorway. Victorie was always hanging to the edges of the chaos that was a Weasley gathering. Hermione understood how the little girl felt and tried to bring her in to the fold.

"Hey sweetheart." Hermione said sweeping the little girl up into her arms. "How have you been?"

"I missed you Aunt Nene. You were gone a long time."

"I know Vic. I missed you a lot too." Victorie placed a kiss on both sides of Hermione's face, as her mother had taught her and then laid her head down on Hermione's shoulder.

"They are really loud."

Hermione laughed. "They really are, aren't they? Do you want to go in with me to say hello to everyone else?" The little girl didn't answer, just tightened her hold on Hermione.

"Hey there stranger." Hermione looked up at the doorway and into the familiar green eyes of her best friend.

"Hey." She held out her open arm and he crossed the foyer for a hug. "How are you? How's Ginny?"

"Why don't you come in and find out for yourself?"

Hermione smiled as she linked arms with Harry and walked into the room. They were all so busy that no one noticed as she slid in and took the seat Harry had vacated next to Ginny sitting Victorie down next to her. "You look really good Gin." Ginny squealed and turned to hug her friend.

"When did you get here? I've been waiting all night! I wanted to go and find you but Charlie said you told him you wanted to clean up and Mum wouldn't let me go!"

"Ginny you're a married woman, you could have come."

"And blatantly defy Mum? Are you insane woman? Even with my hormones going crazy I have enough sense not to do that!"

Hermione laughed, Charlie's head snapped up from his game of exploding snap against George and Ron. "Hey, Hermione, glad you decided to show up." At his statement the whole room was silent as they realized their number had grown.

"Finally all my babies are home!" Molly exclaimed engulfing Hermione in a bone crushing hug. She pulled Hermione up off the couch, spreading her arms out and checking her over.

"I'm fine Molly. I've been eating, I've not been ill." She grinned, "I am very glad to be home."

Molly smiled, "Of course, dear, we've just missed you horribly."

"It's true Mum we have, now let go so we can all take a turn squeezing her to death!" George said, playfully pushing his mother to the side before attacking Hermione. They passed her around the room, until finally she ended up back on the couch smushed in between Ginny and Charlie, holding George and Angelina's sleeping baby. "This is what I want." Hermione thought to herself, "I really have missed this." She said to Ginny.

"Oh yeah, the noise, the constant bickering, and the breaking of numerous items, it's wonderful."

"Yeah, but it's home."

Ginny laughed and nudged her with her shoulder. "You want to have a sleepover tonight? We can kick Harry out of the house."

"How about you just come over to my place? I really miss my bed." Ginny laughed at her and got up to find Harry as Molly called to Hermione from the kitchen. She turned to Charlie, and held out Fred. "Here, hold him."

George watched with a grin, as Charlie smiled at Hermione and took the baby from her. This was going to be fun.


	12. Chapter 12

Hermione smiled to herself as a familiar weight pressed her down into the couch. Charlie propped himself up on his elbows and leaned down to kiss her. "We can't do this."

"Why not?" he whispered huskily, leaning down to plaint kisses along her jaw line.

"Hermione where are your towels? I can't find any in the bathroom."

"That's why not." Hermione laughed as Charlie rolled off the couch and onto the floor as she sat up. "Towels are in the closet in the hallway Gin."

"Why didn't you tell me my sister was here?" he hissed.

"Me? I do believe you were the one who attacked a sleeping girl in her living room."

By the time Ginny emerged from the shower Charlie was gone, "Hermione who was here earlier?"

"Just your brother, he was dropping off something I had left when we portkeyed in yesterday."

"Oh, okay. I've got to head back home. Can you come over for dinner tonight? Harry's was going on last night about how it's unfair that I got to see you when you came home and he had to wait."

"You know he's just jealous that he wasn't here for movies and ice cream last night. He'll have to wait even longer though. I have to run to the office here and I'll be busy for the rest of the night."

"Fine, but don't blame me when you get in trouble with your best friend."

Hermione laughed and shooed Ginny into the fireplace.

* * *

"Hermione, over here!" she heard Charlie call out to her. He pulled her into a hug and wrapped his arm around her waist as he escorted her into the building. "You're taller than normal tonight."

Hermione stuck out her foot, showing off the stiletto boots she was wearing. "These might be the cause of that." She laughed as Charlie's eyes widened. "I've never met your friends before, I wanted to look nice." She grinned and opened her coat, modeling the well fitting jeans and maroon long sleeved t-shirt she was wearing.

"You do know you went to school with some of them."

"It's not the same Charlie."

Charlie was still laughing when they apparated onto the front steps of Justin Green's home.

Two hours later Charlie was looking for Hermione; he hadn't seen her for about twenty minutes and was curious. Since they had graduated from Hogwarts he and his friends had gotten together around Christmas every year to catch up with each other. The majority had moved off and even those who still lived nearby rarely saw each other but everyone came home for Christmas or at least apparated in for the night. Justin came up to Charlie and handed him a glass, "Lots bigger than it used to be."

"From the ten of us that we started with, yeah lots bigger."

"Well once we started marrying and bringing our spouses with us it was bound to expand. Speaking of which, what happened to our spouses' only rule. Last time we checked you weren't married, unless there's something you need to tell us."

"Oh yeah mate I ran off and got married sorry I forgot to tell anyone." He laughed at the startled expression on his friends face. "Calm down mate, we aren't even engaged yet. I just wanted her to come with me tonight, thought you all would like her."

Hermione looked up from the game she was playing and caught Charlie's gaze and smiled. "Hermione Granger! Pay attention!" Padma exclaimed.

Hermione blushed and looked back down to the game board and moved her piece. "You know," Rachel said from across the board, "You're the first girl Charlie's ever brought to one of these things. There is actually a rule against bringing someone you aren't married too."

"It's true," one of the other women piped in, "I dated Randall for four years before we got married and I was never allowed to come. So what we want to know is how you convinced Charlie to let you."

Hermione smiled, "He asked me to come with him tonight. I didn't even know about this until about a week ago."

"Uh oh, I think our Charlie's got it bad girls." Hermione shook her head at Rachel's comment and tried to get the focus back on the game.

The guys came over to investigate the laughter and the six of them started a new game, Charlie was winning until Hermione sent his piece back to his home base, "Oh take that Weasley!" she exclaimed, as his piece whizzed back, putting him in last place.

The whole room erupted in laughter as Charlie pouted, "This isn't fair! It's an enchanted Muggle game! She's had more practice!"

"Wipe your tears you big baby," Hermione responded, sticking her tongue out at him.

The rest of the night went along the same lines. Hermione fit right in with Charlie's friends, he had been right she already knew quite a few of them, from both Hogwarts and her work at the Ministry. She was taken by surprise when Charlie came over to get her from her spot gossiping with some of the girls it was getting late and Charlie had to get back to the Burrow.

Charlie helped Hermione into her coat as they said goodbye to the people in the room. "Hermione, stay just a little longer." Padma said wrapping her in a hug, "I haven't seen you in ages!" She swayed a bit on her feet as Justin came over to steady her.

"Don't be a stranger, Charlie." He said wrapping his arms around his wife. "Seeing you once a year is really not enough." Charlie agreed and they hugged before Charlie grabbed Hermione and apparated them out.

Charlie let go of her when they landed back at her apartment. "I had a lot of fun tonight Charlie." Hermione said, collapsing onto the couch and struggling to pull off her boots. Charlie sat down next to her and grabbed her legs, pulling her shoes off for her and settling back into the couch.

"I'm glad you came tonight. I told you that you would know people." He said as he began massaging her feet.

"It was nice to see Padma and Oliver. I had no idea that Hannah Abbott had married Jonathon Greengrass."

"Yeah, several years ago, he's a couple years younger than I am. She was in your year right?"

"Oh Charlie." She groaned as his fingers kneaded a sensitive spot. He grinned at her and slowly started massaging his way up her legs.

He stopped suddenly, "Do you have anymore of my siblings hiding in your bathroom?"

"I don't think so." Hermione opened her eyes; Charlie was standing in the nearly dark room, his wand drawn.

She opened her mouth to speak but he silenced her with his hand. "Stay here." Charlie edged from the room and disappeared down the dark hallway. When he didn't come right back laughing Hermione grabbed her wand and followed.

Hermione sped up as she heard a giant crash; she pulled herself up against the wall, as she heard a dark voice, "Crucio!" It was dark and menacing, full of hate.

She whirled around the corner and threw a stunning spell in the direction the voice had come from. She hit her target, but barely yelled "Protego" in time to stop the spell from the second man in the room. She stunned him and sent her patronus running for the Aurors as she flicked her wand and tied up the two men in the room.


	13. Chapter 13

Harry burst into the apartment. "Hermione? Hermione!" He yelled into the darkened apartment, turning on lights as he went.

"This room's clear boss."

"Back here! I've found them." A voice called from back down the hallway, Harry took off at a sprint, his heart pounding like a drum. "Sir, I'm not sure what happened. There are two men unconscious and bound in the back room."

"Stay here and investigate, I am going to St. Mungo's to see if they are there." Harry ordered as he apparated out.

Hermione stumbled out of the floo at St. Mungo's, supporting Charlie's body as best as she could. When she emerged from the fireplace the medi-wizards took Charlie from her. "I'm coming with you."

"Miss I'm sorry but you have to stay out here. We will let you know as soon as we can what is happening."

"NO! I'm going with him!"

"Miss I need you to calm down. I need you to tell me exactly what happened. Then you'll need to fill out some paperwork and tell us as much as you can about his medical history."

"His name is Charles Weasley; he was tortured with the Cruciatus Curse." Hermione moved away from the receptionist who was talking to her and grabbed a handful of floo powder. "Ari where are you? Please be home." She called into the fire.

"Hermione? How are you?"

"Ari, I need Charlie's medical files. He's been attacked and I don't know what to tell them about his medical history."

"I'll be right there."

"No you don't have to."

"Hermione, shut your mouth, not only is he my friend but I've been his Healer for years now. I'll be there in ten minutes."

True to her word Arianna and James apparated into St. Mungo's ten minutes later. "I need to speak to the Healer in charge of his case Hermione." She nodded and Ari took off through the doors they had taken Charlie through minutes before. James led Hermione over to a nearby chair.

"I need to see Hermione Granger right away." Harry's voice carried out over the waiting room, as he harassed the woman at the desk for information.

"I'm sorry, sir, but there is no one here by that name. I've checked our records for you six times now."

"Did you say you were looking for Hermione?" Harry's head swiveled as he turned the direction the voice came from. "She's waiting back here."

Harry's shoulders sank in relief. She was safe. "Take me to her." He said following the man from the room. The man in front of him handed Hermione a cup as he sat down, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Hermione?" Harry called her name as he crouched down in front of her chair. "I need you to tell me what happened tonight."

James tightened his hold on Hermione, "Can this wait? She's been through enough without some brute interrogating her."

"It's okay James. This is Harry, he's my best friend." She smiled through her tears, "although he can be a bit brutish at times. I think his wife would agree with me. Charlie and I had just gotten back to my apartment and he heard something coming from the back, he made me stay while he went to see what it was. I heard them use the cruciatus on him." James glared at Harry as Hermione tried to regain her composure. "By the time I got to him they were torturing him, so I stunned them and tied them up and brought Charlie straight here."

"How's he doing?" Harry's question sent her over the edge as she lunged forward into his arms.

"Oh Harry! I'm so scared. What happens if he can't wake up? Or worse ends, what if he ends up like Neville's mum and dad?"

"Ms. Granger?" The healer who had taken Charlie emerged from the emergency ward, his body language telling them more than his carefully selected words ever would. "We've moved him into a private room. He's stable but unconscious. His body was severely damaged. We have been able to repair most of the physical damage; however, we will not be able to determine the damage his brain has sustained until he awakens. Ms. Granger, you need to know, he might never regain consciousness and if he does there is a fairly good chance that he will no longer be the man he was before."

Hermione was stunned. This wasn't happening. She was going to wake up in Romania to the sound of Charlie's snores and realize it was all a dream. Any minute she was going to wake up. Any minute now.

James stared at Harry; he didn't know what to do. If he was in her situation he would likely curl up and die. Harry reached out for Hermione, forcing her to look at him. "Hermione this isn't a dream. This is real. I need you to come back; Charlie needs you to come back."

Hermione steeled her shoulders back, "You're right Harry. They don't know Charlie; this won't get the best of him. If anyone can overcome this it's Charlie."

"There you go, Hermione. Charlie's a Weasley he can do whatever he wants."

Hermione smiled up at her best friend even though it didn't reach her eyes he was thankful that she was able to smile at all. "Thanks Harry." She removed herself from the protective cage that Harry and James had formed around her so that she could face the healer again. "I want to see him."

Arianna opened the door and stepped back to allow Hermione to precede her into the room. Hermione strode over to Charlie; he was paler than she had ever seen him, even more so than the time he had been bitten by the baby horntail. Gently, she brushed his hair back from his face as she stared down at him. Hermione didn't know how long she stood there just watching him breathe. She seemed to be doing this too much lately, the reserve was always short staffed around the holiday seasons and Charlie had been picking up the slack more and more recently, working with those that no one else would.

Harry leaned against the doorway to Charlie's room, watching Hermione. She had been standing there next to his bed for over an hour now and had not uttered a word. "Hermione." She didn't respond to the sounds of his voice but after sixteen years of friendship he knew she was listening. He started his carefully planned out speech but her hand in the air stopped him. "Harry, I need you to floo the Weasley's and let them know that he's here. I'd do it myself but I don't want to leave him alone and Ginny is going to need you now."


	14. Chapter 14

Ron stumbled out of the fireplace into the entrance hall of St. Mungo's and took off at a sprint towards the ward his brother was in. He skidded into the room stopping as he took in his brother lying eerily still on the bed.

"How's he doing?" Hermione flinched at the sound of Ron's voice from the doorway.

"The Healer's aren't sure but I know it's going to be okay."

Ron crossed the room and was by her side before she finished her sentence. Pulling her into his embrace he kissed the top of her head as he watched his brother. He pulled back far enough that he could see her, "Hermione, what happened? Is he going to be okay? All Harry said was that the two of you had been attacked and that Charlie was here."

Hermione shook her head, "I'll tell you when everyone else gets here. It'll be easier that way." She pulled away from him and ran her fingers lightly across Charlie's face.

"It's okay, you know."

Hermione flinched at his words; she had been so concerned about Charlie she had forgotten that they hadn't told Ron yet. It wasn't that she was worried about his reaction. It had just seemed in considerate to announce to his family that they were together without telling him first, even without their past romantic history and the fact that Charlie was one of his favorite brothers, he was one of her best friends and he deserved to know before the whole world.

"I'm not saying I wasn't surprised and maybe I accused him of doing something to you but you've been happy the past few months, happier than you have been in a long time."

"He told you?"

"Yesterday, he came by the flat, said he wanted to tell me something." Ron chuckled, "I couldn't figure out what I had done, Charlie never just pops in for a visit. The two of you have been pretty damn sneaky. I had no idea."

"Ron you never have a clue." The smile on her face was shaky but it was there and that's all that mattered to Ron at the moment. He had moved on, hell he was engaged to someone else but the woman in front of him would always have a piece of his heart. "Stop being sentimental, don't cock your eyebrows at me Ronald Weasley, I know that look on your face" He chuckled at her and pulled her back to his side.

"He's going to be okay, Hermione. There is no way that he's leaving you now."

Ginny burst into the room and ran straight to Charlie. "Charlie, wake up, this isn't funny!" She collapsed into the chair next to the bed, her head falling onto her brother's chest. "Wake up, Charlie, come on. I can't lose you too."

Harry came into the room not long after her. "I've contacted everyone, they are on their way. Bill is dropping Vic off and then they're coming here, George is closing up shop, I couldn't find Molly and Arthur but Percy is trying to track them down." He told Hermione as he wrapped his arms around his sobbing wife.

George found Hermione doubled over in the hallway when he arrived a few minutes later. "What are you doing out here? Is he…" He trailed off unable to finish his sentence.

She raised her hand to stop him from starting up again. "He's the same. I'm fine. I needed some air." George let out a sigh of relief. He had assumed the worse when he had come upon his brother's girl devastated in the hall. He just patted her on the shoulder and walked into the room. Immediately he figured out why Hermione had needed to escape. He needed to escape and he had just walked into the room. Ginny was sobbing into Harry's shoulder and Ron was staring at his brother as if he would disappear if Ron were to look away. Harry wasn't fairing much better than Ron but his attention was tuned to his pregnant wife.

"Ginny, pull yourself together, you're mum and dad will be here soon and they have enough to worry about without seeing you like this and it's not good for the baby. Ron stop awkwardly staring at your brother. Someone find out where your mum and dad are." Hermione barked out orders before returning to Charlie's side, the fire in her eyes quickly changing into worry and fear.

Harry ushered Ginny out into the hall and led her to sit in a chair in the hallway. "Love, Hermione's right, you need to calm down. The doctors already warned you that you have to keep your blood pressure down." Ron joined the pair in the hall not long after Ginny's breathing had returned to normal. Bill found them like that when he walked into the waiting room.

"Hermione, how are you?" Bill went straight to her when he walked into the room. Harry had filled him in on the situation with Charlie when he had flooed him earlier. Hearing his voice Hermione flung herself into his arms, sobbing into his chest, "I…I…he's…"

"Shh, Hermione, it's going to be okay." Bill mumbled into her hair, rubbing his hand comfortingly in circles on her back. "Don't worry; it's going to be alright." Hermione's knees gave out and Bill moved her back down to the chair next to the bed.

Molly burst into the room, Arthur hot on her heels, her hands balling into fists at her side as she saw Charlie lying in the bed. "What happened to my son?" her face quickly becoming as red as her children's hair. "Where is the Healer in charge?" She pushed the chair Hermione had just dozed off in away from the bed in her haste to get to her son. Startled Hermione jumped up from the chair, straight into Molly. "Oh dear, have you seen the Healer? Harry said they'd tell us what happened when we got here. Do you know if they gave him something to help him sleep?"

While Molly's focus was focused in on her son, Arthur was staring at Hermione. He couldn't seem to understand why Hermione was the one curled up in a chair next to the bed when his children were outside in the hallway. Hermione slipped her arm around Molly, "Why don't you two come outside with me and let him rest and I can make sure everyone knows what's happening."

"Hermione, come on, you have to leave here. You haven't left his side in two weeks." Harry moved so that he was kneeling in front of her chair. "If Charlie saw you sitting here like this day after day he would kill you Hermione. You have to go back to work; even if you don't go back to work you have to do something other than sit in this damn chair!"

Hermione didn't respond, her eyes staring straight through the man in front of her, eyes unfocused and unblinking. He looked up when a firm hand descended onto his shoulder. "Go on, dear, let me."

Molly Weasley conjured a chair up next to the one Hermione was sitting in and reached over and took her hand in her own. "Hermione I know you feel responsible for what happened to Charlie, but it wasn't your fault. Charlie's a grown man and it was his choice to go back down that hallway alone and frankly I'd be disappointed if he had left you alone in a house when he thought something was wrong." She stood and moved Hermione's chair around to face her, "Hermione Granger, get out of this chair right now or I will force you from it myself." Molly was seething, this was not healthy for Hermione and she was not about to lose yet another child. "You have been ignoring reality long enough. I am the last person that wants to admit this but Charlie may never wake back up. The Healers told you that if he didn't wake up within a week that the chances went down exponentially, it's been over two weeks and he hasn't improved at all. You can not spend the rest of your life sitting in this chair." Molly grabbed Hermione and pulled her up from the chair. "Now get out. I don't want to see you again until you have showered, eaten, and spent time at work."


	15. Chapter 15

Hermione smiled sadly to herself as she shifted through the papers at her desk. She had just returned from lunch with James and Arianna who had come for a weekend to check in on Charlie. It had been almost six months since the day Molly threw her out of Charlie's room and while Hermione had been beyond angry for a time, what Molly did was for the best. She was right though; Charlie would have been pissed at her if she had sat around doing nothing. Her assistants' voice from the doorway broke her from her thoughts. "Ms. Granger, the package you ordered came today. Would you like me to bring it in to you now or send it on to your house?"

"Just bring it in here, thanks, and Addison don't forget I'm not really here right now. I'm on my way out to see Harry and Ginny and James. I was just waiting on the present to get here."

Vic wrapped her arms around Hermione's legs as soon as she apparated into the backyard of the Burrow. "Well, hello there, sweetheart." Hermione smiled as she leaned down to hug the little girl, taking her offered hand and listening to her chatter all the way up into the picnic tables in the yard. Hermione waved up at the boys playing Quidditch in the air as she moved over to Molly.

"There you are, take these plates and help the girls set the table." She handed Hermione the plates and then leaned over to kiss her cheek. "Love you dearie."

The sun was setting as Hermione held James in her arms, gently rocking him in the swing. Harry and Ginny were lounging in the yard watching Teddy run around with his cousins. Bill took up the empty space next to Hermione on the swing. "You're looking pretty comfy Ms. Granger, James here hasn't been this quiet since he was born and my kids can't get enough of their Aunt Nene, ever think of having some of your own that we can spoil and then send home with you?"

Hermione smiled up at him, "I'm pretty happy being their favorite aunt in the world right now."

Bill laughed and put his arm out over the back of the swing, watching the newest member of the Weasley family sleep. "Have you seen your mum lately? I need to be going soon and wanted to invite her to have lunch with my mother and me."

"She and Dad snuck off to see Charlie. I heard her telling Dad that she didn't feel like it was really a family gathering unless she got to see all her babies. They went out to the cemetery today too."

"Vic seems to have had a wonderful time at her Weasley birthday party. I'm glad the weather warmed up nicely."

Bill understood her want to change the subject, "That it did, she didn't want to have to stay inside all day on her birthday this year."

Hermione and Bill laughed as they watched Fleur try to convince her daughter that two feet off the ground was high enough to fly her new broom. Hermione said her goodbyes and handed her godson back to his father with a promise to have lunch later that week, before going inside and flooing to St. Mungo's. Molly was right it wasn't a family gathering with out everyone there and everyone still included Charlie, even if he didn't realize it. Hermione knocked on the door before entering the room, alerting Molly and Arthur to her presence. She didn't want to intrude on their moment with their son but she needed to see them, all three of them.

"Hello dear." Molly said, holding out her arm. "We were just wondering if you'd stop by on your way home tonight."

"Of course, I didn't realize you two had slipped out on us. Molly, Mum wanted to know if you would like to join the two of us for lunch this weekend. We're going shopping afterwards in Muggle London if you want to join us for that as well."

"That would be wonderful!" Molly said clapping her hands together excitedly, "I haven't seen your mother in ages."

"Great Molly, it's going to be a good day. Just floo over to the house around eleven, I'm at number 8 Barton Street now." Hermione hugged Molly and Arthur, before sitting on the edge of Charlie's bed. He had been moved into the long term care ward but still had his own private room. Hermione ran her fingers through his hair and placed a kiss on his forehead, closing her eyes she hesitated before leaning back up. "I love you, Charlie. Please come back to me." Straightening she stood and left the room, waving to the healer on duty on her way out.

Exhaustion was taking over as Hermione dropped her armload of shopping bags onto the coffee table. As much as she loved both Molly and her own mother spending the day chasing them through London was definitely not something she was doing again in the near future. "I'm sure torture wasn't on their agenda when we left but it surely was the ultimate goal by the end of the night." Hermione muttered to herself as she flung herself onto the couch.

Her mind drifted back to what had to be the worst part of her day, the three had started their outing with lunch but Molly and Jean had been having so much fun they decided they should have dinner together as well. Hermione was enjoying her salad as she listened to Molly telling her mum all about her newest grandchild. James had been born a couple of weeks before and Jean had only seen pictures of her daughters' godson. Molly usually gushed on for ages about her grandchildren so Hermione was stunned when she looked up and noticed the two women watching her. "I'm sorry I zoned out for a moment, did you ask me something?"

They laughed at her before Molly took pity, "I was just telling your mother here how wonderful grandchildren are. Then we asked you if there was anyone special in your life. So are you going to tell us? Is there? What about that Draco boy?"

"Molly, please. You know the answer to that question."

Jean reached out a hand and placed it over Hermione's. "Dear, I know you loved him, but it's time to face facts."

Hermione jerked her hand away, and stood from the table, forcing her chair back. She opened her mouth to speak, but shook her head to regain her thoughts, "We are not discussing this here. I'll see you outside."

A voice from the kitchen fireplace jolted her from her train of thought, eliciting an unauthorized groan, "Just come on through, I'm on the couch."

"Hard day there, love?"

Hermione smiled towards the voice without opening her eyes. "Those two women should work for the Aurors, by the time they were done with me I would have told them every state secret I know and made up more just so they would leave me alone."

Laughter flooded her ears as she felt her legs being lifted before being placed back down to rest across his lap as he ridded her of her shoes. "Surely it couldn't have been that bad. Do you know state secrets?"

"Quiet, you have no idea. If there was a store we bought something in it, or rather they did, and I shrunk it down and carried it, until of course I had no more room in my pockets and had to start carrying it around like a muggle." She let out a heartfelt sigh, "and now I've new clothes that somehow I was wrangled into trying on and letting my two mum's purchase them for me."

"Poor little Hermione, had to spend a day eating and shopping with two women who love and got an armload of presents just for her." He laughed as he tickled the bottom of her feet.

Hermione grabbed the pillow from behind her and smacked him across the head, "Shut up Drake. You are not funny."

"Molly asked me today if you were single."

Draco choked on his water. "What the hell did she ask that for?"

"It's her new goal in life to set me up on a date."

"Did you remind her that you're currently dating her son?"

"Apparently she still doesn't comprehend just how much I love her son. Apparently dating him for nine months before the accident and visiting him everyday since he's been in the hospital,"

Draco interrupted, "Not to mention the near catatonic state you were in when it first happened when we had to force you to eat and shower."

She waved her hand and continued as if he hadn't spoken at all, "isn't enough to convince her that we are in love."

He stared at her, "Draco, why the hell did you just pinch me?" She sat up with a start, rubbing her leg.

"Hermione."

She looked up at him, his serious tone throwing her for a loop, "What is it?"

"Maybe she just wants you to be happy. To find someone that you can provide you with a secure future. You know what the Healers said; and it's been over six months since the attack."

Hermione pulled her legs back, "You listen to me Draco Malfoy. I am sick and tired of everyone telling me that he's not going to get better! You think I don't know that everyday that goes by makes that a higher possibility? You think I don't know that I'm never going to get to see him smile again, or listen to his blasted snoring when I'm laying next to him in bed and I can't sleep? You think I don't know that he's never going to kiss me again? Or ask me to marry him? You think I don't know that?" She was seething, her hands clenched into fists at her sides, she wasn't sure when but at some point she had risen from the couch and was standing in front of the fireplace. "Deep breaths, Hermione, slow deep breaths, just breathe." She knew she needed to calm down, but damn it all if the rational part of her brain hadn't taken on his voice, that sure didn't make it any easier to do what it said. She flexed her fingers, staring into the dark fireplace. When she spoke again it was so soft Draco almost missed it, "I know that, Drake, and it's killing me."

Draco stood and wrapped his arms around her waist, he knew she was still struggling with everything but he really thought she had made progress in accepting what had happened. He didn't realize just how wrong he had been. Hermione turned in his arms and hid her head in his shoulder. She wasn't crying. She cried herself out long before. There just weren't any tears left. She'd never held on to him like this before. A quick hug or a peck on the check had become the norm between the two. Right now though, she felt safe as he held her, she needed that. Right now she needed him.


	16. Chapter 16

"Ms. Granger, this is ridiculous. There is no way this proposal will pass and you know that."

"Not to offend you, sir," the ire in her voice would have scared a lesser man but he had been the head of this department for 40 years, not to mention his wife was a living breathing dragon herself, this, this, child, was not going to send him shaking in his boots back to his office. "This is an important issue. Werewolves are humans same as the rest of us, they should be entitled to equal rights as every other citizen. This discrimination has gone on long enough and we are finally in a place to put change into motion."

"Ms. Granger, they are a danger to our society, we have given them certain liberties so far but you need to accept that it is not safe to allow them to wander free in public."

"Mr. Ashcroft! I am not saying that we should let them roam free to destroy and kill during the full moon! What I am saying is that the rest of the month they should have the exact same rights as everyone else. No offense sir, but your ideas are antiquated and frankly, sir, they are wrong."

George smiled at the girl, sometimes she was so passionate over subjects that he couldn't help but urge her on and play devil's advocate. "Ms. Granger. You have some very well thought out and detailed points, as you have been lecturing me for weeks now I know them quite well. I want a detailed proposal written and on my desk by Monday morning to present to the department."

Hermione's jaw dropped open as he strode from the conference room. She had stayed behind, purposely dragging out gathering and putting away her things, in order to have a meeting with the Head of The Department for Magical Law Enforcement. She had been badgering him since she arrived to re-examine the current laws concerning werewolves and start the long journey to over turning the deeply entrenched prejudices against them as well. "Well that was unexpected."

Draco walked into Hermione's office and immediately turned around and walked back out to her secretary. "Addison? Is Hermione here? We were supposed to go to dinner tonight but she doesn't seem to be in her office. Has she gone already?"

Addison flashed a bright smile at the man in front of her. She loved the days when Draco came to take Hermione out, he almost always stopped and flirted with her while waiting on Hermione to finish up whatever she was working on. "Unless she climbed out her window she hasn't left since she got back from the meeting this morning around eleven."

He leaned against her desk, smirking as she tilted back in her chair to look into his face better. He lowered his voice, "Do you really think she climbed out her window? Should I check the ground below or would she have scaled the side of the building. I can see her doing that you know."

"I don't know Mr. Malfoy, why don't we go explore the roof for a while."

Draco winked at Addison and turned back towards Hermione's office, "I'll go check again." He strolled back in to Hermione's personal office. "Hermione are you in here?" Normally her office was impeccable; everything had a place and was properly stored there. Today however was a different story, there were stacks of parchment and books piled high all over the floor, back behind her desk several stacks seemed to be teetering on the brink of destruction. A sneeze alerted Draco to another presence in the room. He walked around the desk and before he could stop it laughter burst from his mouth. He had found her. "Hermione please tell me what the hell you are doing on the floor? You do realize that you have a desk do you not?"

Hermione glared up at him, she had moved to the floor hours ago as it provided her more room to spread out her research. "I needed more space." She growled up at him.

"Hermione this isn't more space. This is…this is…" he had to stop to regain his breath, "Hermione you've lost your mind, look around you! You have built a fort out of books and paper! Wait just a moment and I'll have Addison find you a blanket and pillow and you can live here. It'll be your school girl fantasy come true."

"I'll have you know that I am working on a very important case and you are not helping."

"Calm down, Granger, I won't let you stand me up for dinner tonight so climb your way out of that poor excuse for a new home and come with me."

"Get out of my office ferret boy."

Draco laughed and made his way back out to Addison, "I seem to be free for dinner tonight and have reservations that are in danger of going to waste. Would you care to accompany me to dinner?"

Addison stared up at the man in front of her, "Wasn't he in love with her boss? He couldn't be serious."

He watched her inner battle, "Let me rephrase, Addison we have been dancing around this issue for two months now and I'm tired of it. You are beautiful, funny, and intelligent, and surely by this time of day you are hungry, would you accompany me to dinner?"

Hermione laughed to herself as she listened to the conversation outside her office. Draco had been drooling over her assistant since the day he helped her move into her office, frankly she was pretty sure that he wouldn't have moved more than one box if it hadn't been for the pretty blonde woman he had to walk by to enter and leave her office.

Smiling she conjured herself a new cup of tea and was immersed back in her work. "First things first, we need a law that requires equal rights in the work place for all, no discrimination because one acts like an animal once a month." She laughed to herself, "Well that's not how I meant to say that."

"Hermione, where are you and who are you talking to?"

She jumped up, knocking over a side of her fort as she did so, "I'm right here Bill. Everything alight?"

"I'm at St. Mungo's; you need to get here right away."

Hermione froze, she wasn't ready for this, she couldn't say goodbye, not yet. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath she stepped over her piles of books and stumbled into the fireplace, shouting her destination.

Unbalanced from her fall into the fireplace she was concentrating on her landing when she stepped through into Charlie's room. "Oh I am so sorry, sir." She said as she collided with what felt like a strong masculine chest. Her eyes drifted upwards as she straightened her self and then she could barely breathe. "Charlie?"


	17. Chapter 17

Hermione threw her arms around Charlie's neck, pulling herself as close to him as she could. "I can't believe this. When Bill told me to come I thought the worst had happened. I can't believe this." She buried her head in his neck as he brought an arm around and awkwardly patted her on the back.

"It's good to see you to. Is my brother around?"

Hermione pulled back, her arms slowing coming down leaving her hands to rest on his chest. "Which one Charlie? I'm sure they'll all be here at some point."

He looked down at her and stepped backwards. "I was talking about Ron; I figure if you're here he's trailing along behind you somewhere."

Panic filled Hermione's eyes as she watched him back away from her and finished fastening his belt. "Charlie I don't know where Ron is and frankly, right now, I don't care."

"You don't?"

Hermione was confused. He was awake but something was obviously wrong. "Charlie, why would I care about Ron's current location?"

"Aren't you dating him? Most girlfriends care about that kind of that." He cocked his head and grinned at her. "Or are you two fighting again?"

Hermione just stared at him, missing Bill's entrance into the room. "Hermione, the Healer wanted to talk to you; he's waiting for you in his office." She nodded and walked from the room, glancing over shoulder before Charlie was out of her sight.

Hermione collapsed into the chair that Arthur offered to her when she entered the room. "Ms. Granger, I've explained the situation to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley already but legally the finally decision is yours to make."

She didn't realize that he had been talking until he addressed her. "I'm sorry I didn't hear any of that. What exactly is going on? Why am I still making decisions? He's up and alert. I just saw him. He was confused but that will pass won't it?"

Arthur cut the Healer off, "Hermione, Charlie is functioning on his own. Physically the only thing wrong with him is that his reflexes aren't as quick as they used to be, something that may be overcome in time."

"That's great, Arthur." She smiled up at him.

"Hermione listen to me, physically he's almost completely back to normal; however, he doesn't remember the last five years."

"Will he remember?"

"They aren't sure. We haven't told Charlie anything yet."

"Ms. Granger, we're releasing him into your care."

Hermione buried her head in her hands. This was not supposed to happen. She had played this scenario over and over again in her mind, he was going to wake up and they were going to live happily ever after. She should have known better, if life had taught her anything so far it was that fairy tales did not come true.

She paused, resting her hand on the doorknob to Charlie's room. Wonderful parents Molly and Arthur were leaving it up to her to explain to him what was going on. She snorted; it was just another way for Molly to slyly get back at her for not telling her about their relationship.

Charlie was leaning against the railing of the bed waiting on someone to come in and tell him he was free to leave. He stretched his legs, the movement felt wonderful. He couldn't remember what had put him in the hospital, in London of all places, but his muscles felt odd from to much time spent lying down. He looked up as the door opened and Hermione walked back in, closing the door behind her.

She leaned back against the door, taking in his questioning glance. This conversation would be easier in a place he felt comfortable in. The only problem was she wasn't completely sure where that place would be. Pushing away from the door she started talking, avoiding eye contact with him, "The paperwork is all sorted now. We can leave directly from this fireplace; the connections they put in place for the family will last until after we leave and then they'll take them back down."

Charlie was stunned. Where were his parents or even one of his siblings? He grabbed his bag and joined Hermione in the fireplace. She grabbed his arm and pulled him along behind her as she shouted their destination and the hospital room disappeared from view.

"Where are we?"

"This is my house in London. I just moved in a couple of months ago. It's in a safer neighborhood than my old apartment and I'm able to set up stronger and more complicated wards since the whole building is mine. After the attack I couldn't stay there anymore, the slightest noise set me off, it wasn't healthy to stay there.

"You're rambling."

She smiled to herself as she handed him a cup of tea, he might not remember but he was still the same Charlie.

"Sorry about that. It's a bad habit I've formed when I'm nervous."

"Hermione, why are we here? Why didn't they send me home with my family?"

He watched as Hermione closed her eyes and took a deep breathe. "Drink your tea Charlie. I'll be right back."

That was not what he had expected her to say. This couldn't be good news. Why was she the one telling him what was going on and more importantly why was she so nervous. He was the one who had just been released from the hospital. He was the one who had been attacked. He was the one who had no bloody clue what was going on. What right did she have to be angry? He took a sip of his tea. How did she know how to fix it? Damn it why had she hugged him? They had never been close. She was his little brother's girlfriend. His sister's best friend. Always around but never part of what was going on in _his_ life. This day was becoming more and more confusing as it went.

Hermione leaned against the bathroom door. "I must have been an awful person in a past life to wind up here in this one." She moved to the sink and splashed water onto her face. Staring at herself in the mirror she took a deep breathe. "It's now or never Hermione Granger. Face it, this is your life and you love that man, regardless of whether he remembers it or not."

Charlie was livid by the time Hermione came back from the bathroom. He whirled around to face her, "You are going to tell me what is happening and you are going to tell me now. What the hell is going on?"

"Seven months ago you were attacked by renegade Death Eaters in my apartment. You've been in a coma like state since then."

Charlie groped around behind him, desperately searching for the kitchen stool he had vacated moments before. Finding it he sagged onto against the counter. "You're telling me that I've missed out on seven months of my life? That I've been lying around like a vegetable for over half a year. What about my job? My friends?

"James and Ari have been coming in on the weekends. They came right after you were attacked and she assisted the Healers when you first came to the hospital since she has been your primary Healer for the past ten years."

"Five."

"What?"

"Ari has only been working at the reservation for five years; she started working there right before she married James."

"Charlie, this is important. I need you to tell me the last thing you remember."

"I already told the healers that I can't remember the attack."

"What's the last major event you can remember?"

"George and Angelina's wedding was the last big family event. We had a party for Dad's birthday sometime after that, I brought down Julia and mom through a big fit because she thought I was getting married."

Hermione remembered that night. It had been five years ago, Molly was almost flying she was so excited to have all her children and grandchildren in the same place at the same time. Almost everyone they knew was going to be crammed into the backyard to celebrate Arthur's birthday. When Charlie had apparated in he hadn't been alone and Molly had almost fainted. The next day she had went on and on about how Charlie never brought anyone home and how he must be serious about this one to bring her into all this chaos.

Hermione laughed at the memory, Julia had been nothing more than a friend who was traveling back home as well. She was the only muggle in her family and therefore was meeting her brother in London and taking a train the rest of the way home. Her brother couldn't meet her when they arranged so Charlie had offered a place to stay and more food then she could ever eat and she gladly accepted.

"Charlie you were hit with a powerful cruciatus and were badly injured. The healers weren't sure that you would ever wake up and were convinced that if you did you wouldn't be the same mentally."

He cringed at her words, "What are you trying to say Hermione?"

"Did the healers tell you anything?"

"Not really, they ran some tests and told me that my family would explain everything to me. I think they were just ready to have me and my gigantic family out of their hair."

"Your tests show that you are healthy, your reflexes aren't as quick as they were before the incident. They do believe; however, that with some practice you can be back to where you were before hand, it's probably just from being in one position for so long. It's your memory has been affected most. From what the healers gathered from their scans of your brain and from the questions you've answered." She paused and made sure he was looking at her before she continued, "You can't remember the past five years."

He recoiled back from her, knocking over the stool he was sitting on, "Is this a joke? This isn't funny. George, are you hiding here someplace? Hermione this isn't funny. Come out everyone have a good laugh at Charlie."

"Charlie, I know this is a shock."

"A shock? This isn't a shock! This is some sick joke."

Hermione propelled Charlie towards a chair. "Sit down Charlie." She conjured a glass of water and handed it to him. Walking over to her refrigerator she grabbed a picture and pulled out a chair so she was facing him. "This was taken at Vic's birthday party two weeks ago." She handed it over to him and watched as his face changed.

"She's so big."

"She is. Vic misses you a lot. At her party she told Bill that it wasn't fair that her favorite Uncle Charlie couldn't come to her birthday party. I think she tried to save you a piece of cake."

Hermione relaxed inwardly as a small smile flashed across Charlie's face. Even if he was still panicking he was at least listening and trying to accept.

He stared at the picture for what felt like an eternity for Hermione before he spoke again. "Why am I here with you?"

It was the question she had been dreading since they told her that he couldn't remember anything. She didn't want to lie to him but she knew that it was not the time to tell him. "We thought it might be easier for you to find out someplace other than the hospital or the Burrow. It's a Saturday so the whole family is there."

Charlie nodded and looked back down at the picture in his hands. Hermione and Vic were sitting on the tire swing in the backyard, huge smiles on their face. It was unreal, his precious niece was so small and now, well now she was growing up and he couldn't remember any of it.


	18. Chapter 18

Charlie had to escape. He couldn't help it. There were just so many of them, and they all watched him as if he was going to blow his top at any moment. Of course, after all that staring he was pretty sure he was going to. He had slipped off a few minutes ago and so far no one had followed him out into the muggy night.

His mother had thrown a "family" dinner, which of course meant that anyone who had even been near a Weasley for more than ten minutes had been invited to the Burrow for dinner that night. They all seemed to think that he was going to break if they got to close to him and to top it all of they all kept shooting Hermione strange looks and giving her hugs.

Hermione sat down next to him on the ground and silently handed him a glass. He sipped from it for a while before looking over at her. Her knees pulled up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them as she stared off into the distance. "I've some lose ends to tie up in Romania and I thought you might like to get away from all of this, I'll be leaving for the Ministry in the morning at eight to take a portkey."

"Will you still be babysitting me once we get there?"

Shocked she whipped her head in her direction, "What?"

"Isn't that what you've been doing? Babysitting poor, poor, Charlie."

"Is that what you think Charlie? That I've been doing all of this because I feel sorry for you?"

"Well why else would you? We are barely friends." If he didn't know better he would have sworn that tears were in her eyes as she turned her face away from him.

"Trust me, Charlie, that's the last reason I'm doing this. Why should I feel sorry for you? Of course, it's difficult for you, but even if you don't recover your memories, you have friends who care about you and a family who loves you, honestly Charlie your life is far from awful."

She walked away from him. Back into the light that spilled out from the Burrow.

"Hermione!" Arianna launched herself into her friend's arms as they appeared in the Romanian Ministry. "I'm so glad you've come back! I was worried you might not." She turned and rounded on Charlie, "And you! Look at you! Hermione told us that you were up and about we were so excited! What are you doing back here so soon?" She turned back to Hermione, "Should he be traveling such long distances so soon? You did ask the Healer in charge there? Actually, come back with me so I can examine you myself."

Charlie and Hermione stared off after her as she headed out towards the doors and started laughing. Hermione reached out and wrapped her fingers around Charlie's arm. He looked at her, surprised, but didn't move away, it took him a second before he realized that she had taken it to apparate them.

He pulled his bag from his pocket and began to unpack his things. Turning with an armload of clothes he knocked his wand off the dresser. Muttering to himself he bent over to retrieve it, his hand connected with something that definitely wasn't the wood of his wand. He wrapped his hand around the material and pulled it out from under his bed. "What is this?" Held up the object up in the air he could see it clearly.

"Never knew Hermione had such good taste in lingerie, congratulations Charlie."

"Hermione, what?" Charlie choked out.

"Don't tell me you don't recognize fine lace lingerie when you see it? I know you've been out of it, but come on Charlie." James laughed at his friend's red face from the doorway. "Might have to figure out where she bought that thing, get one for my wife."

Charlie pushed passed James, taking the stairs two at a time until he came to the living room. "HERMIONE!"

"Charlie, what is it? Are you alright? What's happening?" She moved swiftly across the room, meeting him at the bottom of the stairs.

He thrust the nightie into her face, "Care to explain this to me?" He said through clenched teeth.

"You didn't tell him?" Ari's astonished voice drifted across the room.

Her gaze never left Charlie's as she responded. "I was waiting for the right time. It's a difficult thing to explain."

"I think we'll leave you to it then." James said, stepping around Charlie and grabbing his wife's hand before stepping into the fireplace and calling out their destination.

Alone in the quiet house, Charlie and Hermione stared at each other.

"Why does James assume that this belongs to you?"

Sighing she took it from his hand and moved to sit on the couch. "Because Charlie, it is mine."

"You and Me?"

"For some time now."

"But, you and Ron, and we're not close, I'm always here, you're there. How?"

"Oh Charlie." Hermione sighed and turned her head to look at him. He had slid down the wall, and was now sitting on the floor staring at her. "I was temporarily assigned here at the Romanian Embassy; I was filling in as the Ambassador. Your mum sent hampers of food for us and sometime between that first dinner and getting to know each other we fell in love."

"Love? How do you know?

"How do I know what? That we're in love? Or that you love me? Love is hard to explain Charlie." Hermione sighed, her head dropping down to rest in her hands. "I know you love me because you tell me, because you know how I like my tea and you fix it for me, because you know not to talk to me first thing in the morning, because you'll do anything for me, because I love you. You are wonderful Charlie, you may not remember us but I do and I won't give up what we had easily. You've said it yourself, I'm stubborn and opinionated and don't let go until I get what I want or the facts sway me. I'm in this for the long run, Charlie. Even if you don't want me to be, I won't leave you because I know that we're supposed to be together."

"Hermione."

"You know it would be helpful if you could start stringing together complete sentences. I'm getting tired of being the only one speaking around here!"

"What do you want me to say, Hermione?" Charlie rose from the floor, his fist clenched at his sides. "You want me to express my undying love, tell you that even though I can't remember the last five years that I someone know that I love you and always have? It doesn't work that way! I'm not that man! I just can't accept what you're telling me and blindly follow!"

"I never said I expected you to! The last thing I want is a man who loves me just because he thinks he is supposed to! I've been in that relationship before Charlie and I won't go back into another. No, I don't expect you to declare your undying love, but you are wrong. You are that same man and I want to help you! If you never remember, I'll live with that, but I'm not going to leave you when you need me the most!" Hermione was standing, facing Charlie now. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calmer than before she continued. "I know this is hard for you, everything you think about your life isn't what actually is, and everything around you has changed, but it's not easy for the rest of us either. Your family has been worried sick over you, your mum…let's just say another son lying almost dead in a hospital bed was not good for her, and now that you are up and around. How do you think I feel Charlie? The man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with doesn't even remember that we were together, he barely considers me a friend!" Hermione raised her hand to stop him from speaking, "I know that doesn't compare to what you are going through but don't think for a second that you are the only one hurting."

Charlie crossed the room to her; tipping her head up with one hand he used the other to pull her close. "I am sorry, Hermione. I've been so selfish, I should have realized sooner, you were the one making decisions, they released me to you; you were the one to bring me home. You knew I needed to be away from the hectic atmosphere of the Burrow. I should have known."

She gave in to her nerves and let her head rest against his chest. "I didn't mean to be so harsh, Charlie. It's just I've been keeping it inside for so long and you came running down the stairs and threw that, that thing, in my face in front of our friends no less, and I just snapped."

He threaded his fingers through her hair, pulling her flush against him, whispering into her hair. "I shouldn't have done that. I was just so shocked when James made a comment about it being yours that I just reacted. Have I gotten any better at that?"

He smiled as he felt Hermione chuckle into his chest, "No such luck, Charlie." He heard her mumble into him.

He held her against him, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed up against him. She was gorgeous, and smart, and a heart like none other, he was beginning to see why he had fallen for her.


	19. Chapter 19

Hermione smiled as she slipped into the satin dress. She hadn't been able to stop smiling all day. Just the thought of Draco at the end of the aisle was enough to send her smile into overdrive and now that the day was finally here she couldn't believe it was happening. "Hermione?" Ginny questioned, moving to stand in the doorway, "Are you ready yet?"

She grinned again, as she pulled on her shoes and met Ginny at the door. "I've been waiting for this day a long time, Gin. I can barely believe its happening."

Ginny laughed as she linked her arm through Hermione's and escorted her down to wait behind the wooden doors of the church.

Hermione marched down the aisle, smiling at Draco as he fidgeting nervously, Nott doing his best to keep him still. He stepped out and kissed her cheek before she took her place next to Theo. It wasn't traditional and Narcissa had thrown a fit, trying to convince Draco that a female could not stand with him at his wedding but he would have none of it.

The music swelled as the doors burst open and Astoria, escorted by her father, walked into the church. Tears leaked from Hermione's eyes as she watched Draco's face light up as he saw his bride walking towards him.

"Thanks, Theo, but I'm not really feeling up to dancing tonight." Hermione shook her head as Nott walked off but didn't call him back. The past two years had been difficult and she was beginning to move on with her life but she knew that Theo was looking for much more than one dance.

"I don't like the way he looks at you."

"Harry, you don't like it when any breathing, non-Weasley, male looks in my direction."

"That's not true."

Ginny laughed as she joined the pair, "Of course it's true Harry. You scared that poor man to death last week and he was just asking to borrow the salt shaker from our table."

Harry crossed his arms and huffed, "He had evil intentions." The girls laughed before Ginny's eyes went wide.

"Dance with me, Harry. Now." She pulled him away, leaving a stunned Hermione standing alone on the edge of the dance floor.

"That boy does have evil intentions with you."

Hermione whirled around, her head slowly tilting up to look at the man who had snuck up behind her.

Charlie looked out of place in his jeans and t-shirt amongst the dress robes of the rest of the wedding party. "Mum told me you would be here." Grabbing his arm, Hermione pulled him out and into a side room.

"What are you doing here? Are Ari and James alright? What's going on?"

Charlie grinned as he pulled her to him and into a hug. "I just wanted to see you."

Hermione tilted her head back so she could see his face. "Charlie, what is going on? We haven't spoken in months and you show up at my best friends wedding and cause a scene?"

"Cause a scene? Hermione, I said hello and we left the room to talk. If you'd like a scene I can arrange one for you, one quick pop over to George's and back."

Hermione's laughter was forced to a stop, she couldn't breathe, he had disapparated them from the room. "What the hell, Charlie?" Hermione shouted as she pushed herself away from him. "Where did you take us?"

"Look around, love."

Hermione stumbled when she heard the endearment fall so easily from his lips. Her senses went into overdrive as she reached up and pulled her wand from its hiding place, gripping it tightly she whirled around to face him.

"Who are you?"

"What do you mean, dear? It's just me, Charlie Weasley."

Hermione ducked as the man sent a spell flying in her direction, pulling up the skirt of her dress she began to run.

"Go ahead and run, muddy filth, there's no one around for miles, no one to hear your screams when I cut you and leave you!"

The maniacal laughter spurned her on, running as fast as she could. Tripping Hermione fell hard on the ground in front of her; the laughter grew louder as blackness surrounded her.

Her arms wouldn't move. She tried again, pulling with all the strength she had, but still they didn't budge. "What's going on?" she mumbled, her head pounded and body ached. Slowly she began to remember the events from the night before.

"How nice of you to finally join us, Ms. Granger, we have been waiting for you to wake up."

Hermione lifted her head to better view her captor, the room around him was so dark that she could not see his face. "You can see we've learned a lot these past two years," Kneeling in front of her he forced her to look at him, "You're not as strong as they all said, you wear your weakness on your sleeve." Pushing her backwards into the wall, he stood, pacing the room. "I've got you now and there will be no letting you go until I am able to enact my revenge. Soon your precious Harry Potter will come and rescue you, and then we will have our sweet revenge on the one who killed our master."

The man whirled from the room, the door slamming behind him as Hermione prayed that no one else would be hurt because of her mistake.

Draco paced back and forth in his study, he had returned two days ago from his honeymoon trip and he couldn't find Hermione anywhere. She had agreed to take care of the house while he and Astoria were gone, but there were no signs that anyone had entered the house in the month they had been gone.

Astoria wrapped her arms around her husband, leaning her head against his back. "I'm sure she's fine, Draco. You know how busy she gets at work; we can stop by in the morning and check on her if you still haven't heard back from your owl."

Draco nodded as he clutched his wife to him. "This is not like her, Mother said she hasn't heard from her since the night of the wedding, and she wasn't there to see us off."

Astoria nodded as she led him over to the couch and handed him a cup of tea, "its fine, love, just give it some time."

"Hello there favorite sister of mine."

Ginny screamed as she enveloped Charlie in a bear hug. "Oh Charlie, I'm so glad you're here! I've missed you so much and Hermione too. We just couldn't believe it. Where is she? Did she not come in?"

Charlie pushed Ginny back from him, "Gin-bug, what are you talking about? Hermione isn't with me. Why would she be?"

"Very funny Charlie Weasley, you came and got her a month ago, swept her off in the middle of Draco's wedding reception."

"Gin, I did not."

"Did too."

They were both quiet as the regarded each other. "HARRY!" Ginny screamed for her husband, as she realized that not all was as it had seemed.

Hermione was exhausted; she barely lifted her head when she heard the door scrape against the concrete floor, signaling the entrance of her captor. The flash of the camera lit the room, driving her back against the wall as she tried to escape the light. "It seems your so called friends have finally realized that you're missing. This should do the trick in enticing them, and once they're here we'll be able to exterminate both you and Potter once and for all."


	20. Chapter 20

Hermione shook uncontrollably, she couldn't move at all anymore. Days were indistinguishable from the nights in the room she was locked in. The damp, musty, air made it almost impossible to breath.

"Ready for some more, mudblood?"

Hermione gasped at the voice, she knew this man. Her voice wouldn't come as she tried to yell out again.

"Don't even try and speak to me. I gave you a chance to do this the easy way and you ran from me." He grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. "There's no one here to save you now." He flung her back against the wall she was chained to, his laughter floating back to her long after he had slammed the door and left.

"Gin, I need you to get the kids out of the house, I'm calling an order meeting."

Ginny looked up at Harry from her seat in front of the highchair, spoon frozen in midair, "What's happened?"

"It's about Hermione."

Ginny froze unable to move until the cries from the baby in front of her grabbed her attention again.

Harry struggled with what to say as he watched the members of the Order that we're left gather around the table at Grimmauld Place. Charlie tumbled through the fireplace, two people quick on his heels.

Charlie backed into the wall as Harry thrust his wand into his neck, "Tell me how I found out about you and Hermione." Harry growled, twisting his wand harder against Charlie's adams apple. He had let his guard down once and failed her; he wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

"She told you." He wheezed out, the pressure from the wand making speech difficult, "The night of her birthday in Romania after everyone else had gone to bed and I had left for the night. It was the same night you told her that Ginny was pregnant."

Slowly Harry lowered his wand and gestured for the new arrivals to take a seat. Using his hands as an anchor on the table he looked out across the room. It seemed like just yesterday to him that he, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins had been on the other side of that door, listening in with extendable ears while the "grownups" decided the future of the trio and now here he was trying to save Hermione from whatever her fate may be.

Ari spread her maps out over the table, "We have narrowed our search parameters down to three general areas, it isn't much but it's more than we started with. Once in the areas we should be able to quickly narrow it down to even closer areas than these until we are able to locate her whereabouts."

Harry raised his head so that he was looking out at the table before him, ignoring Ari's remarks. "We have a break through in the case."

Silence descended the room, as eerie as the calm before a storm, as they all stared at Harry. "Herm…" he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, unable to say her name, "She has been taken by a fringe group who is still trying to enact revenge on those who were instrumental in the fall of Voldemort. Not only do they want her dead but they believe it is a perfect way to lure us into a trap." Harry straightened, in full auror mode now he continued. "I received this today."

Charlie snatched the envelope that Harry threw onto the table, pulling the contents out. They were pictures, He couldn't breathe. She was emaciated, dirty, bloody, beaten, her clothes hung from her in shreds, as metal chains held her up from the floor. Her body lying motionless with the exception of the occasional spasm of a muscle, she was almost unrecognizable as she laid there limp in her own blood.

"We believe they are holding her hostage in the LeHages ancestral home. No one has lived there in years and is just outside of flooing distance from London."

Charlie burst from his seat, "What the hell are we doing sitting around the table like idiots then? We have to go and save her. NOW."

Harry flicked his wand, silencing Charlie, "We need first to develop a recon plan and send in an advance team to survey the area so that we know what we are dealing with before we barge in with out a formulated plan."

She was so weak she no longer tried to fight them anymore, there was no use. _How could I have been so stupid to wonder off with who I wished was Charlie like that? I should have known. I should have stopped him. _Her body shuddered on its own as the whip descended onto her back, reopening barely healing wounds as it created new ones, blood dripped down her arms, matted into her hair, and still she did not, could not, move. _What's the point anymore?_ She thought to herself, the pain was always excruciating, the beatings seemingly endless.

Charlie paced the floor; he couldn't sleep, not since the night he found she had been taken. His image used to lure her away from the safety of her friends. His therapist told him again and again it hadn't been his fault, but how could it not be. He failed her once when he couldn't remember her. She had been brave when he awoke with no memories of their life and he had been an ass to her. He knew that now. Dr. Ash had been working on helping him cope with the loss of years and together they had agreed to try retrieving his memories, he had hopes of regaining them and surprising his family. Slowly things were beginning to snap back into place for him and now this. If she hadn't trusted him, wanted to see him, had he come back to England and told her himself she wouldn't have wandered off. There was no denying his role in this. He would find her.

"None of this is your fault, Charlie, stop blaming yourself. I can basically hear you from the kitchen." Ginny laid her hand against her brother's arm, halting his steps, "You know if you keep pacing like that you are going to wear a hole into my new carpet."

Jeremy and Ron stumbled, exhausted back into the shelter and safety of the trees outside of the LeHages manor. It had taken days to find, nested back into the hills, it would have been ideal place to live if the whole perimeter did not ooze evil and dark magic. Ron conjured his patronus and whispered to it as Jeremy set wards around their camp.

The whole room jumped to attention as Ron's familiar patronus sprang into the room, the terrier opened his mouth, and Ron's voice filled the house. "We've found it. There are ten men here at all times, more at night. We'll apparate home with locations and details in the morning." Quietly it turned to face just Charlie, "She's almost safe, brother, and we'll have her home soon."


	21. Chapter 21

Charlie leaned back into the small arms that encircled him from behind. "You need to sleep." Her voice soft as to not to disturb the silence of the night, he leaned into the embrace.

"As do you, doesn't seem to matter though."

She chuckled against his back, "Not my fault, the bed's cold when you're gone."

Charlie turned in her embrace, his face still unreadable in the moonlight, encircling his arms around her small frame he pulled her flush against him. He relished in her smile as she gently untangled his arms from around her, keeping his hand to pull him towards the bedroom.

Charlie grinned as he stretched; his eyes snapped open as his arm felt the cold empty bed next to him. He covered his face and groaned; it had been so real.

"Charlie, they're back, get out here."

He jumped from his bed at the sound of his sister's voice, pulling a shirt on over his head he headed down the stairs into the kitchen. His youngest brother was hunched over a map with Harry as they plotted out the location of Hermione.

"When do we leave?"

Six heads jerked towards the doorway. Ari handed Charlie a mug and guided him towards the table. "Charlie, you're going to stay behind."

"Like hell I'm staying behind!" The bang from his fist hitting the table resounded through the room.

"We can't have you running in and blowing things at the first sign of Hermione, Charlie. This isn't going to be easy and we all need to be focused."

Charlie glared at Harry, "You think I don't know that. You think that I don't understand the importance of the success of this mission?" His chest rose up and down rapidly as he seethed.

As they waited for the cover of night, Charlie poured over the outlines of the house with Ron. Plans had been made, details examined and re-examined, scenarios played out over and over, and yet he was still nervous. _What if it didn't work? What if this plan of theirs angered her captors into killing her? _

Bill grasped his brother's shoulder, pulling him out of his downward spiral of thoughts. "It's time to go."

Charlie huddled in the bushes next to an auror whose name he couldn't recall at the moment, his eyes focused on the light seeping out from a basement window. She was right inside. At Harry's signal he crawled across the ground, as Harry and the others surrounded the house to capture the men inside Charlie's one focus was on that light, get Hermione out, no matter what.

Dropping in through the small window, he strengthened the disillusionment spell he had cast over himself and pressed his body against the wall. Checking for signs that they had heard him enter the building, he began moving down the hall.

Crouching down, he pushed open the door, he couldn't breathe; she was there in front of him, chained to the wall. Her body sagging, the blood encrusted chains digging into her wrists. A whispered, "Alohomora" unlocked the cuffs and dropped the chains from her wrists, her body thumping into Charlie's, her weight barely enough to move him.

"No, please no." she whimpered against him. Charlie picked her up as gently as he could and turned to retrace his steps back to the window he had entered through.

"Did you really think it would be that easy?"

Charlie froze as the voice echoed throughout the room. His hand itched to use his wand to kill the man. Slowly Charlie sat Hermione against the wall; drawing his wand he turned to face his opponent. "She's leaving with me whether you like it or not."

"Not this time, you kept her away from me once and it will not happen again."

Charlie shot off a hex, keeping his body a shield in front of a now unconscious Hermione.

Paul hit Charlie with a slicing hex, sending him to the ground. Hissing, Charlie flung his body towards Paul knocking the man to the ground. Pressing Paul's wand into the ground, he dug his own wand into his neck. Breathing hard, Charlie pressed his wand even harder into Paul's neck, "I'd kill you now but she needs me more." Pressing his knee into Paul's stomach he used his wand to tie him up. Standing he kicked Paul in the side before snapping his wand and rushing back to Hermione.

Charlie could hear the sounds of fighting seeping through the ceiling, "Peters, Peters." He pushed against the window, searching for the auror he left waiting him there.

"I'm here, Weasley, do you have her?"

"Yes, I'm going to send her up to you. She needs to get to St. Mungo's right away, make a portkey though, she doesn't look like she could handle apparition right now." Looking back down he pressed a kiss to her forehead, "You're going to be okay, I promise."

Charlie hoisted Hermione up through the window and into the waiting man's arms, before running up the stairs to join Harry and the others in the fight.

Peters ran into the emergency ward at St. Mungo's, Hermione's body lying limp in his arms. Immediately the Healers took her from him and rushed her through the wards where he could not follow. The room was silent as the other wizard and witches stared at the blood soaked robes of the newest arrival to the waiting area.

"Was that Hermione Granger?"

"What's going on?"

The whispers flooded the room only to silence a few minutes later when Charlie and Harry burst through the door. Harry headed to Peters as Charlie rushed to the admittance desk to find Hermione. The three were slowly joined by the rest of the Weasley family as the waited.

Two hours had passed when Ron came into the waiting area, his wounds from the fight healed at the office, with Hermione's parents in tow.

"Is she alright? Where is she? Can we see her?" Hermione's mother rattled off questions faster than anyone could answer before her husband was able to calm her down and get her to take a seat.

Harry kneeled in front of Hermione's parents, "We found her two hours ago and brought her in. Mrs. Granger she was hurt pretty bad but magic can do miracles. I've seen it happen."

His words seemed to calm Hermione's mother but her father's eyes never left a distraught Charlie, who had isolated himself from his family. Placing a hand on his wife's back he whispered in her ear and then stood to move to Charlie's side.

"Charlie?"

Startled Charlie turned his tear streaked face to look at the one man he did not want to face. "I don't think I can tell you how sorry I am, Mr. Granger."

Mr. Granger sighed as he took the chair next to him. "Charlie, we don't blame you for this. She's been in danger since we put her on that train when she was eleven years old. We've never really understood exactly what she's been through since we sent her to your world but we know that she's never been completely safe."

"I should have protected her better. If I had been faster, stronger, more aware, I could have kept her from any of this."

"Hermione was always a magnet for trouble, when she was five I built her a tree house, she wanted to help so much that I finally let her come up into that tree and help me. I turned my back for a second and she was falling. I can still see her falling towards the ground, helpless to stop her. She was in the hospital for three weeks after that."

"This is different."

"Charlie, that wasn't my fault and this isn't yours. You went head first into danger for my baby girl and I will always thank you for that."

Charlie shook his head and began to respond but his attention was drawn to the opening doors of the emergency ward.

"Hermione Granger's family?"

They stood as the haggard looking Healer made his way across the waiting room.

"How is she?"


	22. Chapter 22

Charlie sat in the hard chair next to Hermione's bed. The healers wouldn't allow them to use magic in her room so he couldn't transfigure the chair into something more comfortable as he longed to do. They had told them they could see her but only one at time for 20 minutes and only two visitors per hour.

She was malnourished; several of her ribs and one of her legs had been broken, on top of a severe loss of blood. She hadn't moved from the spot he first found her in. Her mother and father had come in to see her first, the nurses allowing an exception to the rule for her parents to be able to see her together for the first visit. Charlie paced the whole time they were in the room with her. He needed to see her, he had handed her out that window, but he wouldn't believe that she was really safe until he saw her here for himself.

The Healer came in, disturbing him from his thoughts, running a diagnostic check with his wand and checking the stats from the monitors that were connected to her and her magic. "Your time is up, Mr. Weasley."

Charlie nodded and kissed her forehead before moving to follow the Healer out of her room when he heard movement coming from her bed. He spun around and sprinted back over to her. "Hermione?" she moved her head at the sound of her name. "Hermione, love, can you hear me. Open your eyes."

"No."

"Come on, love, open your eyes."

"I don't want to wake up, reality is awful Charlie. I don't want to wake up."

Charlie reached out and stroked her cheek, "It's okay, love."

"Ms. Granger?" The Healer had moved to the other side of the bed, rechecking now that she was awake. "My name is Frank Wrider; I'm the head of the Mary Wright Ward here at St. Mungo's. You were brought in last night by an auror."

Hermione slowly opened her eyes; the lights had been magically dimmed so that the lights would not hurt her eyes. She smiled up at Charlie before recoiling back in fear. "No, no, no, no, no. This is not funny Paul! Just leave me alone!" She was screaming as she backed away in fear. "The real Charlie wouldn't be here, he doesn't remember, he doesn't remember." She was sobbing now as she cowered against the head of the bed. "Please don't. Please."

The Healer moved towards her but Charlie grabbed his lab coat and pulled him backwards, "Don't touch her, she thinks her captor is tricking her. You need to go and get Harry Potter right now. He's the only one that she'll believe."

The Healer began to disagree but Charlie pushed him towards the door and growled, "I'm not afraid to take on dragons and I'm sure as hell not afraid of you, now _go._"

Once the Healer was out of the room, Charlie moved towards the end of the bed. "Hermione listen to me, the Healer is going to get Harry."

"Harry? My Harry?"

"Yes, love, your Harry. He's outside with Ginny and the rest of the family. The kids are all with Fleur and Angelina, everyone else is here. Ron is pacing like a cat out there."

"Harry's coming?"

Charlie's heart tore a bit more, if only he was the one she wanted. He mentally shook those thoughts away, Harry was her best friend and no one had impersonated him to kidnap her. No one had impersonated him to torture her. It would be a long time before she could even look at him but she didn't desert him and he definitely was going to leave her. Not now and hopefully not ever.

Harry opened the door slowly. The healer had gone over what was happening inside of Hermione's room for him. "Hermione, it's me."

"Oh thank Merlin, Harry." She tried to move towards him but was trapped in the sheets tangled around her legs.

It was reflex for Charlie, reaching out to catch her before she fell. Her eyes cleared as he held her, cradling her against his body. She reached up and ran her hands across his face, "Charlie?"

"Yes, love, it's me. You're safe now." Gently he sat her back against the headboard, "No one's going to hurt you again, I promise."

"Don't be silly, Charlie, you can't promise that. I appreciate the thought though." She moved her gaze over to Harry, who was standing at the end of her bed. "Please come here."

He moved without further hesitation to her side and wrapped her in his arms. "I was so worried about you. I'm sorry, Hermione, this was all my fault I should have seen sooner what was happening, I should have stopped him from taking you." He buried his head in her hair, his tears soaking her head.

She pulled her arms from his grasps and pulled him closer into a hug, "Oh Harry, this isn't your fault." She turned so that she could see Charlie and held her hand out to him. "This isn't anyone's fault but his. Now can I please have something to eat?"

Harry laughed and pulled away, wiping his eyes. "Alright, _Ron_, I'll go find the Healer and see what I have to do to get you something to eat."

"How are you feeling other than hungry?"

"I ache all over and I feel scared, like at any moment I'm going to wake up and this isn't going to be real." She cocked her head to the side and watched him for a moment. "When was the last time you ate?"

"I'm not sure." He shrugged, sending her a lopsided smile, "been pre-occupied lately."

She scooted as he moved to sit on the bed next to her, pulling her back against him so she could snuggle into his side while they waited for Harry to return.

_This is real, that Charlie was never nice for more than a few seconds. This is the real Charlie, this is my Charlie." _

"Charlie?"

"Yes, love? Do you need something?"

She shook her head against his chest, no there wasn't. It might have been too good to be true but she wasn't going to question it. Not now.

Harry re-entered the room a few minutes with the healer in tow. "Hermione, Charlie." Harry placed his hand on Charlie's shoulder, afraid to scare Hermione if he tried to wake her. Charlie blinked and stared at Harry before realizing what was going on.

He reached over and stroked Hermione's cheek, "Wake up, the Healer's here to talk to you."

Hermione smiled when she opened her eyes, "You're still here."

Charlie chuckled, "Of course I am." He moved away from Hermione as the doctor began to speak.

"Ms. Granger, were going to move you to a different room now. You'll need to spend the night here with us but unless there are some unseen complications you'll be able to leave here in the morning. Your family will be able to visit you all at once in the new ward."

Hermione smiled again at the mention of her family, she couldn't wait to see everyone. "And then I can eat?"

Charlie and Harry laughed as the Healer confirmed that yes he would send her something to eat as Charlie picked her up and placed her in the wheelchair he had waiting.

* * *

Charlie unlocked the door to Hermione's apartment and opened the door to allow her into the house. "Welcome home."

She smiled at him. "I can not wait to shower, they used charms to clean me at the hospital but it's just not the same." She sighed as the hot water cascaded over her body, the water felt as if it washed away the stress. She tried not to look at herself as she soaped her body, she was disgusting the bruises still hadn't faded from her body and she was so skinny she could count her bones. Sobbing she slid down the shower wall.

Charlie was getting worried. She had been in there far too long. He had already showered in the guest bath and fixed them something to eat. No matter how dirty she felt she should be finished.

"Hermione, are you okay?" He knocked against the bathroom door, "Hermione?" He knocked again, louder, when she didn't answer him. "Hermione if you don't answer me I'm going to come in there."

Still no answer.

Charlie tested the doorknob, surprised that it was unlocked. Hermione was sitting in the floor of the shower scrubbing at her arms and legs with all her might. Charlie opened the door to the shower and knelt at her side, taking the sponge from her hands.

"No, I need it. I can't get clean; I can still feel them touching me, still feel the dirt all over. Please Charlie, give it back." She sobbed as she rocked back and forth. He gathered her in his arms and sat with her under the flow of the water.

"You're safe now, Hermione. I've got you. They're never going to touch you again. Harry made sure of that. Never again Hermione." He held her until her sobs gentled to sniffles. Picking her up, he cast a drying spell over the both of them and carried her into her bedroom. Gently he dressed her in her favorite pajamas, and carried her back into the living room, waving his wand he levitated a bowl of soup over to the coffee table. "It's chicken noodle soup, Hermione." He handed her the bowl and the spoon and watched her as she ate it all.

Wiping her eyes with the back of her hands she moved closer to him on the couch, "Charlie, I'm sorry I freaked out on you."

"Hermione, you were held hostage, I wasn't there for very long and I can't figure out how you're doing so well. If I was you I would be a mess."

"You were there?" Her eyes widened and Charlie saw panic begin to well up in her eyes.

Slowly he reached out towards her; he knew that this moment was crucial; gently he lifted her face so that she was looking at him. "Listen to me, Hermione. I was there. Three days ago, Ron came back to the Burrow with exact coordinates and detailed information on your location. The aurors had been on Paul's tail for weeks and had finally nailed him down enough that we were able to go in and get you. Harry and the aurors executed an attack upstairs while the auror that brought you into the hospital and I snuck into were they were keeping you and freed you. You passed out not long after I got to you, I took care of Paul and got you out of there and went back in to help Harry. We took care of everything. No one is going to hurt you anymore."

Hermione came across the couch at him, wrapping her arms around him. "Thank you, Charlie." She buried her head in his chest, as he rearranged them so that they were lying comfortably together on the couch.

"Hermione, I would do anything for you. I love you."

"I love you, Charlie." She snuggled closer to his chest before she pushed herself away.

He smiled down at her face, "Didn't figure it would take you this long to question everything, those meds must be something special."

"Do you really, Charlie?"

"You told me once that your love was something I never had to question, that it was a constant, even when you were mad at me. My love is the same way, I'm sorry that I forgot, I wish I hadn't, I can't believe I lost that time with you. I don't remember everything but I'm working on it." He leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead, before trailing kisses down her face to her mouth. Softly he traced her bottom lip with his tongue requesting entrance. Sighing she leaned into his kiss, her hands running up his chest.

He had meant for it to be a gentle kiss; it seemed she had other plans. Hermione moved her leg so that she was straddling his waist as she fought for dominance in the kiss. He easily acquiesced more than willing to let her set the pace.

Hermione smiled into the kiss as she head him moan, she pulled back placing kisses down the column of his throat. Her hands moving ahead of her mouth down to the top of his jeans.

"Hermione."

She tilted her head up, looking at Charlie through her eyelashes. "Yes, Charlie?" her voice huskier than normal, her eyes had darkened to the color of whiskey.

He grabbed her arms and pulled her up his chest, wrapping his arms around her. "You're going to be the death of me woman."

"What's wrong, Charlie?"

"We can't."

She pulled back from him.

"Don't misunderstand me Hermione Granger, I want to, I think you can tell just how much I want to, but we can't. The Healers said you needed to rest, and trust me this would not be restful. You aren't up to this yet."

She pulled back from him, moving to the nearest armchair she stubbornly crossed her arms across her chest. Charlie moved. Sitting on the coffee table he pulled the chair up to him. His knees on either side of hers, keeping her in the chair.

He pulled up her sleeves, the bruises standing out in the firelight. "You're hurt, Hermione." He pulled the legs of the pair of his sweatpants that she was wearing up revealing her bruised legs to her. "I won't do anything that would hurt you more. I can still see you in my mind, shackled to that wall, bleeding, barely alive, that was three days ago. Your body is not okay yet." Charlie held out his hand and summoned a jar over to them.

She smiled as she read the label, "Weasley's bruise removal paste."

He stood and reached down for her hand, pleased when she took it and let him lead her to her bedroom. Charlie sat the jar down on the nightstand and reached for her, slowly he pulled her shirt up over her head before kneeling down in front of her and gently tugging down her pants, her hands on his shoulders holding her steady as he helped her to step out of them, leaving her before him in just her bra and underwear.

He uncapped the jar and dipped his fingers in; gently rubbing the paste over her bruises, watching as they slowly began to disappear. He worked his way up her legs, placing kisses on each spot, moving up her stomach, giving it the same treatment, before working on her arms. Charlie cupped her face in his hands, nibbling on her bottom lip before kissing her. "I love you." Leaning forward he kissed her forehead, "Now lie on your stomach, let me heal your back." She climbed into the bed and did as he said.

Hermione turned her head so she could see him better. "I already feel better." Her stomach flipped as he smiled at her.

"Draco wants to know when he can see you. He's been driving Astoria up the wall since they've come back."

"I'll floo him in the morning. When do you have to go back to Romania?" She felt his hands pause, "Charlie?"

"I don't have too." His hands resumed their task. "I started regaining memories right before you disappeared but I wanted to wait until I could remember more before I told you, if I had known," his voice trailed off.

"Not your fault, Charlie. Tell me about Romania."

She saw him shake his head out of the corner of her eye before he began speaking again. "Do you remember that night before we left to come home for Christmas? We were lying on the couch at my place and I asked you what you were thinking?"

"Of course." She didn't elaborate.

"Harry contacted us to tell us what had happened and it put everything into perspective, Hermione. If you're not in Romania, I don't want to be. You're right, my family is insane but I can't imagine having grown up any other way."

She turned onto her back as she felt Charlie's fingers start to wander. "They really are insane."

Charlie chuckled, "I know we can't pick up where we left off and there's no need to start over again, but," He paused and leaned forward to kiss her, pulling back just enough that he could see her clearly, "would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow?"


	23. Chapter 23

Hermione jumped as the waiter came from behind her to take her order and again when the drinks were set down on the table. Charlie had enough, he pulled out his wallet and put down enough money to cover their drinks and grabbed her hand, "Come on, let's get out of here."

"We haven't eaten yet."

"Hermione, it's obvious you aren't comfortable here yet. It was a bad idea to bring you out so soon. I don't know what I was thinking." He pulled her up from her seat, "We'll do something just a little more you and me."

He pulled her outside and into his arms. Hermione grinned when she opened her eyes after he apparated them. "The Burrow, Charlie? Really?"

Charlie laughed and pulled her along behind him into the house. "Hey Mum." He raised his voice loud enough for her to be able to hear him.

"Kitchen, Charlie."

"Hermione, dear, how are you today?" Molly asked, wiping her hands on her apron before hugging the girl. "I've just finished up making dinner. Would you like some?"

Charlie grinned, "How did you know that's what we came for?"

Molly shook her head at him and handed plates to Charlie to add to the table. "George is joining us too; I make him come around once a week so that I know he's being fed."

Hermione laughed and waved her wand, levitating two more glasses out to Charlie. "Thank you for inviting us to eat with you."

"You two didn't have other plans did you?"

Hermione blushed and busied herself with finishing putting the food into bowls. Molly laid her hand on her arm, "Hermione?"

"He was so sweet Molly. He took me out to a lovely restaurant but I couldn't stop freaking out every time someone even came near our table. We had to leave before we'd even ordered our meals."

Molly pulled the girl into her arms, "That's completely understandable, dear."

Dinner was a spirited event. George was slowly but surely coming back into his own, Angelina was a big part of that. Hermione felt herself relaxing the longer she was there. She was safe in this place, with these people. She laughed at George and reached for Charlie's hand under the table. She felt him squeeze it back. She smiled at him; everything was going to be alright.

"Hermione!" She jumped a little but smiled as Draco enveloped her in a hug. "How are you? I tried to get to the hospital to see you but I couldn't get in and then by the time I convinced them to let me see you, Charlie had already sent a message to Astoria that you were going home and would let me know when you could see me. I wanted to storm over here and bang the door down but Astoria made me see that's probably not what you needed."

She laughed and led him into the house, "I'm okay, it's just a little hard not to freak out every time I hear a noise. I just keep reminding myself that I'm safe here."

Draco flopped his feet up on the coffee table and took a pull from his drink. "So what are we doing today?"

She pushed his feet off of her table.

"Seriously Drake, I was kidnapped they didn't switch my brain, keep your feet off my table."

"Well either way I'm glad your back, I desperately needed some time in front of your television. Astoria won't let me have one in the house. She said I was spending too much time watching it."

"I'm sure you were."

"Me? Never. Now let's watch a movie."

Hermione laughed and gestured towards her collection. Draco knew when she just needed to spend time in the house. He was a good friend. He put one in and she smiled as it came on, "The Witches", one of her favorites as a child. Draco liked anything that showed Muggles views on witches. She dimmed the lights and closed the curtains as Draco settled back down on the couch.

Charlie found them like that when he arrived at the house after work. Draco stood and stretched and moved to join Charlie in the kitchen.

"Tell me how she really is."

"Better than the Healer's expected but she still isn't doing well. She jumps every time someone enters the room. I know it's only been two months now but she's having trouble going out in public. You're the first person she's let in the house other than me."

Draco leaned against the counter and shook his head. "I don't know what to do to help her reintegrate back out into society. It would be so much easier if she wasn't who she is."

"I think about that too. No matter where I try and take her people are always coming about and asking her questions or whispering about her."

"Have you tried Muggle London?"

"No, I wasn't sure where to take her and her mother seems to think that she would be better off staying in the wizarding world and won't give me any options and you know how her Dad is."

Draco nodded, "A united front. That man is a genius sometimes."

Charlie laughed, "It certainly makes his life easier, not doing much for mine."

"She's taken me to a couple places not to far before. I think she would do okay if we started small and slow."

Charlie nodded. "You free tonight?"

"Let me just get Astoria. There's no way she's going to let me go out without her." He grinned, "She may be a bit miffed that I took a day off to spend with Hermione but wouldn't take the day off to take her shopping last week."

"You get her; I'll wake up Sleeping Beauty in there."

"See you in twenty."

Draco walked to the fireplace and flooed home. Charlie grabbed a drink of water, Draco was so sure this would work but he hadn't been there when he'd taken her out before. Maybe he was right though, maybe in a non-magical place surrounded by friends she would feel safer.

Kneeling down in front of her, Charlie gently shook her arm. "Love, wake up."

Hermione's eyes shot open, but calmed when she saw Charlie. It was an improvement at least, panic no longer welled up in her eyes when she opened them and saw him standing there.

"Where's Drake?"

"He's gone to get Astoria. He'd like for us all to go to dinner. Some place small and quiet in Muggle London."

Hermione sat up and stared at her lap. "Charlie, I don't know."

"Hermione, listen to me. You've got to go out sometime. Draco says you've shown him some places to eat and that he knows where we can go. Someplace people won't bother you. We'll be with you the entire time."

"I better get dressed then." She stood and smiled at him, the smile didn't reach her eyes but at least she was trying.

Charlie kept his arm wrapped around as they stepped into the small restaurant on the outskirts of town.

A plump, older woman made her way from behind the counter when the entered. "Why Miss. Hermione I haven't seen you around in ages."

Hermione smiled timidly at the woman and pulled away from Charlie to hug the woman, "It's so good to see you, Mrs. Johnson. I've been out of the country with work. These are my friends, Draco and Astoria Malfoy." She gestured towards them and smiled back at Charlie, "and this is Charlie."

"Oh your mum has told me all about Charlie." Mrs. Johnson grinned and patted Charlie's arm.

"All good things I hope."

"Oh your mother was right dear, he is quite handsome."

Hermione blushed, causing Charlie and Draco to laugh at her.

Astoria hooked her arm through Hermione's, "Come on, Hermione. Let's sit and leave these two jokesters alone."

Mrs. Johnson laughed, "There's a booth in the back dearies. I'll send Sam over right away."

Charlie grinned as Hermione tripped over the entrance to her house. "Come on in, Charlie."

He followed in behind her; it had been a great night. Draco had been right. She had only flinched once during dinner and that was understandable he'd even flinched a little. Someone in the kitchen had dropped a tray of something and the sound echoed out through the small room.

"Charlie, are you working tomorrow?"

"Yeah, we've got a new batch of hatchlings. I have to go in for a couple of hours in the morning."

Hermione stuck her head around the corner, "I was thinking we could maybe try dinner in the alley?"

Charlie smiled, "I think that's a wonderful idea."


	24. Chapter 24

AN: I never leave these but I wanted to apologize for the long span between updates and to say thank you for reading. A reviewer pointed out that Hermione seemed to be coping and healing to quickly and I have to agree. This story is nearing it's end and I think I know where it's going so updates shouldn't be so far in between again. Thank you again for reading. I hope you enjoy. -KJ

* * *

"No, please. Let me go, please." Hermione fought against the covers holding her to the bed as she screamed in her sleep. "NO!" Her body jerked as she woke, she couldn't slow her breathing, her heart beating a thousand miles an hour.

The nightmares had been building every night since her rescue. So far strong silencing charms had saved her friends from knowing what transpired in her room but she knew they wouldn't last forever. Harry, Ron, and surprisingly George, had taken shifts staying with her at night and she couldn't keep Charlie at bay forever. Pulling a pair of shorts on, Hermione lit her wand and made her way to the kitchen, careful not to alert whichever self appointed male body guard was asleep in the guest bedroom. "I just need a cup of tea and I'll be fine."

"Here."

Hermione jumped and threw a hex in the direction of the voice.

Charlie chuckled as he ducked out of the way, "That's my sister's specialty, if I'm not mistaken, she'll appreciate the fact that it's what you use on intruders in the night."

Hermione took the cup from him and collapsed onto a bar stool, burying her face in her hands she mumbled, "What are you doing here, Charlie?"

"Drinking tea."

"Funny. What are you doing here?

"Waiting on you to admit defeat and come out for your nightly mug of 'I can't sleep because I'm having nightmares and lying about it tea.' Why have you been lying about this, Hermione?"

"I have never lied."

Suddenly he was hovering over her, pressing her forward so that her elbows were digging into the counter top as he pressed against her back, his lips a hairs width away from her ear. "That's right, you've been very careful not to lie, just to leave out pertinent details, to shut yourself away. Try to push everyone who cares about you out of your life." His voice was deep and gruff, the anger rolled off him like ocean waves.

"Charlie, please." She whispered her voice barely audible in the still dark kitchen.

"Please, what, Hermione? We've all been tip toeing around you for months now, I can't begin to imagine what you went through but we want to help. Damn it, Hermione, I want to help you! You have to let me back in!"

Hermione's arms and head fell onto the countertop as she broke into sobs. Choking out words in between her sobs, she could barely breathe as Charlie reached around her and pulled her up against his chest.

"You have to breathe, love. Calm down. Everything will be okay." All the earlier anger dissolved from his voice as her tears soaked his shirt; pulling her up into his arms he carried her to her room.

Eventually her tears calmed enough that he could understand her words, she was whispering apologies, over and over, flowing from her mouth like a waterfall. Charlie propped himself up on his elbow and used his free hand to cup her face, forcing her to look at him. "This is not your fault. You experienced something that none of us can comprehend and it's not the first time that it's happened to you. Hermione, you can't keep us. You are strong enough to handle this, don't let him break you."

Slowly he released her face, his fingers trailing across her shoulder and down her arm; he stopped his caresses when he reached her forearm. "Remove the spell."

She shook her head and adverted her eyes from his face. Charlie reached back and grabbed her wand from her bedside table.

"Remove the spell, Hermione."

Shakily she took her wand and whispered the counter spell, revealing the words scarred into her arm.

Leaning down Charlie kissed her scar before leaning against the headboard and pulling her into his arms. "You have been through so much and I know you well enough to know that you've put off helping yourself to take care of everyone else. It's your turn now, Hermione. It's time to take care of you. I can't do this for you but I can stand by you every step of the way."

Hermione nodded against his chest and pulled her self closer to him. Charlie smiled to himself as her breathing evened out and her small snores filled the room. Everything was going to be alright.


	25. Chapter 25

Hermione couldn't keep the grin off her face as she apparated into the achingly familiar backyard of the Burrow. Today made six months since she had last stepped foot into what had become a second home to her. The lights from the kitchen spilled out onto the lawn, welcoming her home before the occupants inside noticed her presence.

Silently she slipped through the back door, dropping her bag onto the floor and stepping up to the counter she began to slice the carrots that were lying on the counter. Hermione grinned even wider as she heard Molly humming in the pantry.

Molly stirred the soup on the stove, her experienced hands pinching together in the herbs she had brought out and sprinkling them into the pot, reaching over she grabbed the cut carrots and added them to the pot as well. Her hands froze over the pot as she watched the carrots drop.

"Hello, Molly."

Molly turned and engulfed the girl behind her into her arms. "Oh, Hermione! I didn't know you were here; we've missed you so much. I am so glad you are home."

Hermione laughed into Molly's shoulder. "I can't breathe."

"Oh dear, I'm sorry, I'm just so excited to have you home that I couldn't help myself." Pushing Hermione back so she could examine her, she smiled in surprise. "You look well dear."

And she did, no longer were her eyes haunted by ever present dark circles; she was no longer skin and bones but had a healthy glow about her and her clothes fit better than they had in years. Her hair cascading from its ponytail in loose curls and her smile lit her face brighter than Molly had seen it in years.

"I think I might be well, Molly." The girl grinned back at her, her eyes sparkling in the light.

"Well, that's lovely, dear. There are some people in the next room who will be thrilled to see you I'm sure." Molly released her and pushed her towards the laughter flowing from the next room.

George was the first to notice the new arrival to the room. "You going to lean in the doorway all night or are you going to come in here?"

Her laughter filled the room, "Depends on if you're finished pranking for now."

"Oh, my heart is breaking! How could you believe that I would do such a horrible thing to you, dearest Hermione? I am appalled." He sighed dramatically and fell back against Angelina on the couch.

Angelina extracted her arms from underneath George and pushed him from her lap, laughing as he hit the floor. A wounded expression on his face, "Does no one love me anymore?"

Hermione laughed and sat on the couch next to Percy. "How are you?"

"Well, Hermione. What about yourself?"

"I'm wonderful, Percy."

"Hermione!" Ginny squealed as she walked into the room, the baby in her arms quickly transferred over to her husband's surprised hands as she launched herself across the room and at her friend. "I'm so glad you're back!"

Hermione laughed and leaned up and whispered in her friend's ear, "If you weren't pregnant again you would be joining your brother on the floor."

Ginny pulled back shocked, "How did you know?"

"I'm magical."

Ginny snorted, "Funny."

"Harry told me."

Hermione wrapped her arms more securely around her friend and moved her so that her position on her lap was more comfortable. "Harry, why are you over there? Bring me my godson!"

Harry laughed and carried James over to Hermione and Ginny before taking a seat in a chair.

Hermione watched her family. She couldn't express how elated she was to be back home and surrounded by those who she loved more than life itself. Her self imposed absence had been almost unbearable at first. She longed for the arms of her best friends to encircle her in bone crushing hugs, for late nights giggling with Ginny, for pranks from George, talks with Percy, the unfailing love of Molly and Arthur and yet this now was why she had left. Charlie had been right when he told her that she needed to take care of herself. That she was never going to be whole again until she took some time to do what she had spent too many years avoiding.

Now her scars were something she could wear proudly, a piece of her history. Her fears once again made her stronger, and love. Love she no longer considered a weakness. How could she with ones such as these as part of her life.

* * *

Charlie yawned as he rose from his seat on the balcony. "You ready to go?"

"Just about, love. I just need to grab my shoes. Have you seen my book? I wanted to put it in my bag just in case we ran into some downtime today, or in case of an emergency quidditch game." She grinned, and placed a chaste kiss on his lips as she handed him a mug of tea, "Don't put the lid on yet, let it cool a little."

Charlie grinned shrugged on his jacket and headed to the door, holding it open for her to follow behind. He held out his arm for her to take as they walked to the designated apparition point down the street. Pulling her into the alley to apparate he was surprised when she stopped him.

"Are you sure about this?" She bit her bottom lip and stared down at her shoes. "I mean what if"

He didn't allow her to finish, "Do you not want to do this?" His voice was barely audible even in the empty alleyway.

"Oh, Charlie, of course I'm sure. I have never wanted anything more."

Hermione stepped back from him, "I'll meet you there in two hours. Don't forget."

Charlie's laughter interrupted her. "I know Hermione and just in case I forget I've got the list you slipped into my pocket when you kissed me earlier."

Hermione blushed and moved to spin but Charlie caught her arm and pulled her into his embrace. "I'll see you in two hours." He leaned down and captured her lips with his, his hands running down her body. "I love you, Hermione."

"Ginny, where are you?" Hermione yelled into house.

"Shh! Hermione, be quiet." Ginny whispered as she slid into the room in her sock feet. "I just got James to lie down and I'm exhausted."

"Well, I guess you're too busy to come with me then."

Ginny tilted her head and stared at her friend. "Where are you going? You look really nice."

Hermione grinned and pushed an errant curl back behind her ear, "I've come to ask if you would stand up for me when I get married."

Ginny squealed, "Of course! Oh Hermione, I'm so excited for you!" She attacked her friend and pulled her into the kitchen. "When? Where? How did he ask? Where is he?"

Hermione laughed, "Calm down and I'll tell you."

Ginny pulled her friend to a seat at the table and gestured impatiently for her to start.

"Charlie is at Shell Cottage, he went to talk to Bill about being his best man."

Ginny nodded, Bill and Charlie had always been close so it made sense that Charlie would ask his older, and probably favorite, brother to stand as a witness at his wedding. "That makes perfect sense. Now keep talking, Granger."

Hermione smiled, "We'd like to have the wedding in Romania since that's where this all began and if you can we would like to be married by the end of the day."

"WHAT?" Ginny's yell echoed through the house.


	26. Chapter 26

"Are you serious? Hermione this isn't like you at all!"

Hermione laughed as she watched Ginny pace back and forth through her kitchen. "I know, Ginny, it's not like me at all. Normally I would talk the subject to death, plan, plan again, and work out every last detail before considering even discussing the subject with Charlie. I know that. We've been through a lot and every time we get close to becoming something more there is always something in the way. Charlie lost his memory, I was kidnapped, and neither of us wants a huge Molly Weasley planned wedding. So grab your kid and then you and I are going shopping for dresses before picking up Harry and Ron at work and sending a portkey to your family."

James watched the toy duck that Hermione had enchanted to waddle in front of him as Hermione handed Ginny dresses to try on. Hermione grinned and sat on the floor next to her godson, nudging the toy duck back in his direction. He clapped his hands in delight as it tilted its head towards him and began to quack. Ginny watched quietly from the door to her dressing room, "You aren't pregnant, are you?"

Hermione turned so quickly in her seated position that she almost fell to the floor. "Of course I'm not. We aren't ready for children and we have both been extremely cautious about using protection especially after all that has happened recently." She paused and looked up at her friend, "That dress is perfect."

Turning back to James she scooped him and the duck up off of the floor. "Are you ready to go find your Daddy?"

James grinned, "Daddy!"

* * *

Hermione strolled through the Auror offices back to where she knew Harry would be. She had left Ginny to change James into the outfit they bought him and had bags with Harry and Ron's outfits in her hand. She waved at a few of the familiar faces but did not stop to chat as she normal would have.

She pushed open the door to his office and threw the bag on his desk. "Change your clothes, Harry. We need to leave here in ten minutes. Ginny and James are downstairs."

Harry looked up from his paperwork, "What are you talking about?"

"We're going to Romania. There is a portkey leaving from my parents' house in an hour and we're taking it. I'm getting married tonight but not without you there."

Harry stared at her for a moment before setting down his pen and grabbing the bag off the table, he had learned years ago that sometimes it was better to not argue with Hermione, "Give me a minute to change and I'll meet you in the pit."

Hermione smiled and shut the door behind her on the way out and hopped up on the edge of Ron's desk, depositing the second bag in front of him. "Time to change, Ronald."

"What are you going on about?"

Hermione leaned down and whispered in his ear. Ron pushed back from his desk, his face turning colors until it matched his hair. "YOU'RE WHAT?"

"Getting married, Ronald. Tonight, to your brother. You know, Charlie." She laughed and swung her legs back and forth. "Now come on, Harry's changing in his office. You can use it next."

Ron's mouth hung open as he stared at her.

Slowly she reached out and snapped his mouth shut and smirked at him.

"What about Mum and Dad? What about everyone else? You can't just run off and get married! It's not what people do! You have to be engaged and take time to plan things! You can't do this!"

"Calm down, Ronald. It's all sorted out. It may be last minute but that doesn't mean I haven't, as you so affectionately refer to it, 'Hermioned' it to death."

Ron snorted and grinned up at his best friend. "Guess I better get dressed before you hex me then."

* * *

Hermione reached out and grabbed the shoe Charlie had charmed to be a portkey for her part of the journey. He was traveling from the Burrow with the Weasley's using a stuffed dragon as a portkey.

Charlie couldn't wipe the grin off his face as he watched Hermione and her group arrive in the lobby.

"Mistress Granger! Mistress Granger!"

Hermione was tackled by the small elf running and attaching herself to her legs, "I am overjoyed that you are here, oh and my Mistress is getting married!"

They laughed as they watched the small elf dance around Hermione. Hermione dropped to her knees and brought the elf into a hug. "Twink, I've missed you so much!"

The small elf pushed her away and straightened her uniform. "I apologize, Ms. Granger. I was overwhelmed with happiness to see you back here. I was afraid you would never come and see Twink again and oh you are my favorite!" She slapped her hand across her mouth as her eyes bulged, "Oh, please, don't tell the new Ambassador that I said such things. He will be disappointed."

Hermione grinned and hugged the small elf again. "You are coming with us aren't you?"

"You want me to come?"

"Of course I want you to come! You are very important to me. I was sad to leave you here."

Twink smiled and grabbed Hermione's hand. "Stand up before you wrinkle your dress. We must all be going now."

"Alright, dearest, it's time."

Hermione lifted her eyes and looked at her father through the reflection of the mirror. "It's all about to change."

Grant smiled at his daughter. She looked beautiful; he pulled her into his arms and held her as he did when she was young and scared. "Of course it is and it should. For once in a very long time though, Hermione, it's changing for the better."

He pulled back and wiped a tear from her face. "Don't cry your mother will skin me alive if she thinks I made you cry and ruined your makeup."

Hermione giggled and took her father's hand. "Well we wouldn't want you to get in trouble. Let's go, Daddy."

Charlie was speechless as he watched Hermione walk across the yard to him. His other senses yielded to his sight, he saw her father say something to the minister and he knew that somewhere their mothers were sniffling in the crowd but none of that mattered. He was marrying her.

Before he knew it the ceremony was almost over. He reached out and wiped the tears from her cheeks after he slid the rings onto her finger, both a wedding band and engagement ring now adorned her finger a matching band on Charlie's hand. Charlie pulled her in and kissed her, pulling back he leaned his forehead against hers. "You look beautiful."

Hermione smiled at him, "You look quite handsome yourself, husband."

A grin split Charlie's face, "I like the sound of that, wife." He moved to kiss her again almost stumbling when she was pulled from his arms.

"Congratulations, Hermione!" Harry and Ron squished her between them in a hug. Charlie reached to pull her back to his side but was too late as she was swept off among their family.

Hermione smiled as she hugged the last of the Weasley's and made her back towards the one she really wanted to see. Her husband, her grin grew wider as she saw him talking to her father, she walked to him and linked her hand with his. "Ready for dinner?"

Charlie nodded, raising his wand to this throat he cast a sonorous charm, "Everybody, listen up! My new wife and I," He paused long enough to softly kiss Hermione, "would like to invite you to follow us around the house where we have dinner waiting."

"Finally, I didn't think you were ever going to feed us!" George called out.

Charlie shook his head and led Hermione around to the back of the house. She gasped as she took in the scene. The wedding itself had been beautiful, not that she remembered most of it, she knew the sun had been setting behind them and Charlie had charmed music to softly play but this now was more than she could have imagined.

"I can't believe you did this."

There was a large table, big enough for just the number of people in attendance, candles floated over the table and right in the middle of the round table was a large picnic basket.

"Charlie, it's wonderful."

He pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head, "I didn't figure you would mind if I deviated from the plan just a bit. Mum actually helped me with the food. It's just like the baskets she would send us. Ari and James helped me set it up, that's why they weren't at the ceremony."

Hermione watched as her family came around the corner behind them and headed towards seats at the table as Molly and Charlie began pulling food out of the basket, enough to feed an army of people. She moved to join them when a hand on her arm stopped her. "Congratulations, Granger."

She whirled around and threw her arms around Draco's neck. "I didn't think you were going to be able to come! You told me you were in meetings and would be out of town for two weeks."

Draco's lips tilted into a smirk, "I may have said that but when you receive an owl inviting you to a wedding it's rude to refuse."

"I am so glad you were here. I felt awful that you weren't going to even know about the wedding until you returned home."

Draco grinned and linked his arm through hers and guided her towards the table, "Which is precisely why your wonderful new husband sent me an invitation. Astoria is around here somewhere as well."

* * *

Hermione smiled as she leaned against Charlie. Yawning she snuggled closer into his side, tucking her head under his chin.

"Tired, love?"

"A bit."

"We won't be here much longer. I've got something planned for the newest Mr. and Mrs. Weasley."

He kissed her head before leaning her forward and standing up while he clinked his knife against his glass. "Before Hermione and I head to our next destination and no George you aren't invited to tag along." He smiled at his slightly intoxicated brother who was now pretended to be deeply offended. "I wanted to thank you for coming tonight, especially with such late notice. I thought my mother was crazy when she sent me to make sure that my little brother's best friend was eating properly what I thought was going to be a horrible chore turned out to be a wonderful, and beautiful surprise." Charlie reached down and pulled Hermione to stand next to him. "You've all stood by us through everything and been supportive to the both of us separately and together, neither of us could ask for a better family. Thank you for making us the people we are so that we could find each other." He turned so that he was speaking to his wife. "I love you, Hermione."

Hermione smiled sleepily and stood on her tiptoes so she could kiss him. "I love you, Charlie"


End file.
